Lipid Metabolic Reprogramming and Metabolic Stress in Liver Cancer

Recent studies have shown that tumor microenvironment plays an important regulatory role in the growth and metastasis of liver cancer. Metabolic reprogramming represents a series of adaptive metabolic alterations that liver cancer cells undertake when they are under metabolic stress caused by glucose deficiency and hypoxia microenvironment, and lipid reprogramming is an important part of it. Previous studies have revealed a variety of lipid types with altered metabolic patterns in liver cancer cells, and have, to a certain extent, investigated the biological functions and regulatory mechanisms of these lipid metabolic reprogramming processes. However, there are still many lipid metabolic reprogramming processes that have not received thorough investigation, and little is known about their roles and mechanisms in the pathogenesis and development of liver cancer. In addition, how to accomplish the goal of treating liver cancer by targeting key regulatory factors in lipid metabolic reprogramming still remains a major challenge in translational medical research. This paper introduced the sources of lipids and the main functions and driving factors of lipid metabolic reprogramming in liver cancer cells, attempting to provide a theoretical basis and potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of liver cancer through regulating or restricting lipid metabolic reprogramming.