High glucose uptake unexpectedly is accompanied by high levels of the mitochondrial β-F1-ATPase subunit in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

A hallmark of solid tumors is the consumption of large amounts of glucose and production of lactate, also known as Warburg-like metabolism. This metabolic phenotype is typical for aggressive tumor growth, and can be visualized by (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose ((18)F-FDG) uptake detected by positron emission tomography (PET). High (18)F-FDG uptake inversely correlates with survival and goes along with reduced expression of the catalytic beta-subunit of the H(+)-ATP synthase (β-F1-ATPase) in several tumor entities analyzed so far. For this study we characterized a series of 15 head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) by (i) determining (18)F-FDG-uptake; (ii) quantitative expression analysis of β-F1-ATPase (Complex V), NDUF-S1 (Complex I) and COX1 (Complex IV) of the mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC), as well as Hsp60 (mitochondrial mass) and GAPDH (glycolysis) in tumor cells; (iii) sequencing of the mtDNA of representative tumor samples. Whereas high (18)F-FDG-uptake also correlates with poor prognosis in HNSCC, it surprisingly is accompanied by high levels of β-F1-ATPase, but not by any of the other analyzed proteins. In conclusion, we here describe a completely new phenotype of metabolic adaptation possibly enabling those tumors with highest levels of β-F1-ATPase to rapidly proliferate even in hypoxic zones, which are typical for HNSCC.