Human Fibroblast Switches to Anaerobic Metabolic Pathway in Response to Serum Starvation: A Mimic of Warburg Effect

Fibroblasts could be considered as connective tissue cells that are morphologically heterogeneous with diverse functions depending on their location and activity. These cells play critical role in health and disease such as cancer and wound by Production of collagen, fibronectin, cytokines and growth factors. Absence of insulin and other growth factors in serum deprivation condition and similarity of this condition to the environment of tumor cells and ulcer made us to investigate anaerobic glycolysis in these cells. To this end, we cultured fibroblasts isolated from fresh human newborn foreskin in serum free medium for 16, 24, 48 and 72 hrs and measured glucose consumption, lactate secretion and intracellular LDH in these cells. The results showed despite the lack of insulin, the 16hr serum starved fibroblasts consumed glucose similar to non-starved fibroblasts control. Moreover, in this condition these cells secreted higher levels of lactate and exhibited higher levels of intracellular LDH in comparison to non-starved fibroblasts control. Thus it could be concluded that in serum starvation condition, the newborn human dermal fibroblasts may change the metabolic strategy to Warburg effect. This finding opens a new perspective to further understanding the basic mechanisms involved in communication between tumor cells and fibroblasts.