Biochemistry of Metabolism

Humans need glucose, fats and amino acids to survive. These nutrients and other molecules produced through biochemical reactions are known as metabolites. The biochemical reactions are organized in metabolic pathways categorized as catabolic, the breaking down of metabolites to produce energy, and anabolic, the synthesis of compounds that consume energy. The balance between catabolism and anabolism defines the overall metabolism for the life-sustaining reactions in cells or tissues. Dysregulated metabolism underlies several diseases, including cancer.

Our joint laboratory between the DiSFeB at the University of Milan and that of the Department of Experimental Oncology at IEO, combines steady-state metabolite profiling, tracer molecules coupled to advanced mass spectrometry analyses and biochemical functional approaches to identify how metabolites are transformed in different metabolic pathways and which regulators are involved. We are particularly interested in understanding the metabolic fingerprint of cancer cells compared with most normal tissue cells to:

• elucidate altered metabolism among different type of cancers;
• unravel cancer cells-specific metabolic vulnerabilities for innovative treatment;
• define the efficacy of cancer treatments.