fig3

Figure 3. Origin of lactate production. Normal cells do not use the glycolytic pathway beyond pyruvate that goes into the Krebs cycle associated with coenzyme A and converted into acetyl-CoA. Malignant cells follow the glycolytic pathway ending in lactate that is extruded by the activity of monocarboxylate transporters. Lactate cannot stay inside the cell because it would decrease intracellular pH to life-threatening levels, thus it must be swiftly exported. This soft-spot of cancer metabolism transforms MCTs into valid targets^[31-34].