RESUMEN
Obesity and adipose tissue have been closely related to a poor cancer prognosis, especially in prostate and breast cancer patients. The ability of transferring lipids from the adipose tissue to the tumor cells is actively linked to tumor progression. However, different types of breast tumor seem to use these lipids in different ways and metabolize them in different pathways. In this study we have tracked by mass spectrometry how palmitic acid from the adipocytes is released to media being later incorporated in different breast cancer cell lines (MDA-MB-231, SKBR3, BT474, MCF-7 and its resistant MCF-7 EPIR and MCF-7 TAXR). We have observed that different lines metabolize the palmitic acid in a different way and use their carbons in the synthesis of different new lipid families. Furthermore, we have observed that the lipid synthesis pattern varied according to the cell line. Surprisingly, the metabolic pattern of the resistant cells was more related to the TNBC cell line compared to their sensitive cell line MCF-7. These results allow us to determine a specific lipid pattern in different cell lines that later might be used in breast cancer diagnosis and to find a better treatment according to the cancer molecular type.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Altered lipid metabolism has been described in some types of cancer. To analyse in depth the metabolic modifications in breast cancer patients, advanced 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance was performed in these patients. The main objective of this paper was to define a specific lipidomic signature for these cancer patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Serum from 240 women (171 breast cancer patients and 69 control women) were studied and analysed by nuclear magnetic resonance. RESULTS: Triglyceride-enriched particles, specifically very low-density lipoprotein triglycerides, intermediate-density lipoprotein triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein triglycerides, were positively associated with breast cancer. Moreover, alanine, tyrosine, and branched amino acids were also associated with increased risk of breast cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Breast cancer patients showed a modified metabolome, giving a very interesting tool to draw different radar charts between control women and breast cancer patients. To our knowledge, this is the first time that advanced nuclear magnetic resonance profiling has been used to identify relevant and specifically altered lipid or amino acid metabolites in BC serum samples. The altered metabolic signature could be analysed for early and reliable BC patient diagnosis and prognosis.