The context-specific roles of urea cycle enzymes in tumorigenesis

The expression of the urea cycle (UC) proteins is dysregulated in multiple cancers, providing metabolic benefits to tumor survival, proliferation, and growth. Here, we review the main changes described in the expression of UC enzymes and metabolites in different cancers at various stages and suggest that these changes are dynamic and should hence be viewed in a context-specific manner. Understanding the evolvability in the activity of the UC pathway in cancer has implications for cancer-immune cell interactions and for cancer diagnosis and therapy.
Cancer cells with a dysregulated expression of urea cycle (UC) enzymes provide metabolic benefits to tumor survival, proliferation, and growth. These changes in UC expression are dynamic, vary along tumorigenesis, and have implications for cancer-immune cell interactions, cancer diagnosis, and therapy. Thus, targeting UC as an anticancer treatment requires continuous adaptations.