Scientists at Leipzig University have now discovered that cancer cells need the succinate receptor to control their metabolic rate, that is, the consumption of oxygen and the production of energy.

The research has been published in the Cancer Letters Journal. "Without the succinate receptor, cancer cells die because they lose control over central cellular metabolic pathways," explained study head Dr Claudia Staubert from the Rudolf Schonheimer Institute of Biochemistry.

One of the characteristic changes in the metabolism of cancer cells is known as glutaminolysis - a dependence on the amino acid glutamine for energy production. By combining metabolic analyses with image-based studies to monitor cancer cell survival, the Leipzig-based scientists were able to show that cancer cells that exhibit such a dependence on glutamine depend on the function of the succinate receptor for their survival.

"Knockdown of the receptor caused increased death of cancer cells. This was also detectable in combination with known therapeutics," said Dr Staubert. The succinate receptor, therefore, represents a potential target for the development of chemotherapeutic agents for cancer treatment. Further research will need to identify relevant pharmacological inhibitors of the receptor and evaluate their potential as drugs in cancer therapy.

The study at the Rudolf Schonheimer Institute of Biochemistry was carried out in cooperation with the Carl Ludwig Institute for Physiology at Leipzig's Faculty of Medicine.