November 22, 2018

expert reaction to study looking at mannose sugar treatment and changes in tumour growth

Research published in Nature demonstrates that oral administration of mannose to mice restricts growth of several types of tumour and enhances cell death in response to some form of chemotherapy.

Dr George Poulogiannis, Team Leader in Signalling and Cancer Metabolism, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said:

“During cancer development, cells often restructure their metabolism so that they can grow more quickly.  A classic example of this is that they show a marked increase in glucose uptake to support their high energy needs.

“The study presented by Gonzalez et al. provides an excellent example of how this heightened metabolic activity can be used against cancer cells, making them vulnerable to forms of attack that target cell metabolism.

“The researchers found that cancer cells show the same propensity for taking up high levels of an alternative sugar, known as mannose.  However, unlike glucose, they cannot fully metabolise mannose, leading to impairment of metabolic pathways that are crucial for tumour growth and treatment resistance.

“This study highlights how interfering with key characteristics of tumour metabolism can help identify cancer’s Achilles heels, and could lead to more effective therapeutic strategies.

“However, there is a lot of work to do before this research can be translated into the clinic – including clinical trials to test whether the treatment is safe and can slow tumour growth in cancer patients.”

‘Mannose impairs tumour growth and enhances chemotherapy’ by Pablo Sierra Gonzalez et al. was published in Nature at 18:00 UK time on Wednesday 21 November 2018.

Declared interests

Dr George Poulogiannis: “No conflicts of interest.”