Intercellular Mitochondrial Transfer in the Tumor Microenvironment

Abstract

Cell-to-cell communication is a fundamental process in every multicellular organism. In addition to membrane-bound and released factors, the sharing of cytosolic components represents a new, poorly explored signaling route. An extraordinary example of this communication channel is the direct transport of mitochondria between cells. In this review, we discuss how intercellular mitochondrial transfer can be used by cancer cells to sustain their high metabolic requirements and promote drug resistance and describe relevant molecular players in the context of current and future cancer therapy.

Keywords

• cancer
• mitochondria
• mitochondrial transfer
• tunneling nanotubes
• tumor microenvironment