Metabolic reprogramming by miRNAs in the tumor microenvironment: Focused on immunometabolism

Shadia Hamoud Alshahrani; Yousif Saleh Ibrahim; Abduladheem Turki Jalil; Abdelgadir Alamin Altoum; Harun Achmad; Rahman S Zabibah; Gamal A Gabr; Andrés Alexis Ramírez-Coronel; Ameer A Alameri; Qutaiba A Qasim; Sajad Karampoor; Rasoul Mirzaei

doi:10.3389/fonc.2022.1042196

Metabolic reprogramming by miRNAs in the tumor microenvironment: Focused on immunometabolism

Front Oncol. 2022 Nov 22:12:1042196. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2022.1042196. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Medical Surgical Nursing Department, King Khalid University, Almahala, Khamis Mushate, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Medical Laboratory Techniques, Al-maarif University College, Ramadi, Al-Anbar, Iraq.
³ Medical Laboratories Techniques Department, Al-Mustaqbal University College, Babylon, Hilla, Iraq.
⁴ Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Gulf Medical University, Ajman, United Arab Emirates.
⁵ Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia.
⁶ Medical Laboratory Technology Department, College of Medical Technology, The Islamic University, Najaf, Iraq.
⁷ Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Agricultural Genetic Engineering Research Institute (AGERI), Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt.
⁹ Health and Behavior Research Group (HBR), Catholic University of Cuenca, Cuenca, Ecuador.
¹⁰ Laboratory of Psychometry and Ethology, Catholic University of Cuenca, Cuenca, Ecuador.
¹¹ Epidemiology and Biostatistics Research Group, Universidad CES, Medellin, Colombia.
¹² Department of Chemistry, University of Babylon, Babylon, Iraq.
¹³ College of Pharmacy, Al-Ayen University, Thi-Qar, Iraq.
¹⁴ Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
¹⁵ Venom and Biotherapeutics Molecules Lab, Medical Biotechnology Department, Biotechnology Research Center, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are emerging as a significant modulator of immunity, and their abnormal expression/activity has been linked to numerous human disorders, such as cancer. It is now known that miRNAs potentially modulate the production of several metabolic processes in tumor-associated immune cells and indirectly via different metabolic enzymes that affect tumor-associated signaling cascades. For instance, Let-7 has been identified as a crucial modulator for the long-lasting survival of CD8⁺ T cells (naive phenotypes) in cancer by altering their metabolism. Furthermore, in T cells, it has been found that enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) expression is controlled via glycolytic metabolism through miRNAs in patients with ovarian cancer. On the other hand, immunometabolism has shown us that cellular metabolic reactions and processes not only generate ATP and biosynthetic intermediates but also modulate the immune system and inflammatory processes. Based on recent studies, new and encouraging approaches to cancer involving the modification of miRNAs in immune cell metabolism are currently being investigated, providing insight into promising targets for therapeutic strategies based on the pivotal role of immunometabolism in cancer. Throughout this overview, we explore and describe the significance of miRNAs in cancer and immune cell metabolism.

Keywords: MicroRNAs; cancer; immune cell; immunometabolism; metabolism.

Publication types

Review