Question

• Explain the Warburg effect and how this affects cancer cells

Answer 1

In normal cells main energy production is through oxidative phosphorylation however in most of the cancer cells produce energy through anaerobic respiration by lactic acid fermentation and this effect is known as Warburg effect. This effect is a result of damage to mitochondria in cancer or in tumors it may be due to anaerobic environments. This in turn results in shut down of mitochondria that are related to apoptosis which kills cancer cells. As we are aware of the fact that normal cells derive most of the energy from glycolysis, therefore cancer cells also need to activate glycolysis instead of the presence of oxygen, to proliferate.