L-Lactate (Lactate)

Extracellular lactate is a central component of the metabolic reprogramming observed in malignant tumors, where it accumulates as a byproduct of the Warburg effect (Liberti & Locasale, 2016). Beyond its role as a waste product, it functions as a key oncometabolite that acidifies the tumor microenvironment (TME), facilitating protease activation and basement membrane degradation to promote metastasis (de la Cruz-López et al., 2019). Lactate also mediates metabolic symbiosis between glycolytic and oxidative cancer cells and serves as a ligand for the G protein-coupled receptor GPR81, which triggers pro-survival signaling (Brown et al., 2020). Crucially, high lactate levels create an immunological desert by suppressing the effector functions of T cells and NK cells, thereby enabling immune evasion (Brand et al., 2016). Current drug development efforts focus on small molecule inhibitors of monocarboxylate transporters (MCT1/4) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDHA) to disrupt these metabolic and signaling axes (Halestrap, 2013).

Other names

Lactic acid2-hydroxypropanoateOncometabolite lactateExtracellular lactate

Inhibition of monocarboxylate transporters (MCT1/4) to block lactate transport or inhibition of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) to prevent lactate synthesis.