Histol Histopathol

Review Open Access

TGF-β links glycolysis and immunosuppression in glioblastoma

Lingli Gong, Li Ji, Daxing Xu, Jingjing Wang and Jian Zou

Center of Clinical Research, The Affiliated Wuxi People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi, PR China


Corresponding Author: Jian Zou, Center of Clinical Research, The Affiliated Wuxi People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi 214023, PR China. e-mail: zoujan@njmu.edu.cn


Summary. Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive brain tumor in adults, characterized by diffuse infiltration, dysplasia, and resistance to therapy. Metabolic remodeling and immunosuppression are typical events which contribute to GBM progression, but the molecular link between these two events remains largely undetermined. Studies have shown that high levels of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and its receptors are associated with glioma malignancy and a poor prognosis. TGF-β plays an important role in cell metabolism and immunity. During tumorigenesis, TGF-β induces a shift in cell metabolism from oxidative phosphorylation to aerobic glycolysis, providing a favorable environment for tumor growth. Locally, TGF-β creates an immunosuppressive microenvironment and promotes the malignant phenotype of GBM. In this review, we aim to link GBM aerobic glycolysis and immunosuppression through TGF-β to provide new ideas for the study of GBM. Histol Histopathol 36, 1111-1124 (2021)

Key words: TGF-β, Immunosuppression, GBM, Glycolysis

DOI: 10.14670/HH-18-366


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©The Author(s) 2021. Open Access. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons CC-BY International License.