Abstract B052: Hyaluronic acid influences amino acid metabolism in glioblastoma's U87-MG cell line in a 2D culture via LAT1 transporter expression

Abstract Glioblastoma (GBM) is one of the deadliest forms of brain cancer with high inter and intra tumor heterogeneity and altered metabolism pathways. GBM’s microenvironment is highly complex and plays a key role in determining overall tumor growth and patient survival. Hyaluronic acid (HA) is one of the key components of this tumor microenvironment and is often associated with poor prognosis. HA is present in the form of polymeric chain units, and it is highly likely that the resulting molecular weight (MW) distribution influences how a tumor cell behaves. Through this study, we highlight this differential influence of HA MWs on GBM’s energy metabolism. GBM’s U87-MG cell lines were grown in an adherent culture with media supplemented with different MWs of HA (10, 60 and 500 kDa) and glucose concentrations (0 mM: glucose starved, 5. 5 mM: normoglycemic and 25 mM: hyperglycemic). LC-MS analysis on supernatant media coupled with numerical analysis highlighted an interesting influence of HA on GBM’s amino acid metabolism via reduction in LAT1 transporter protein expression. The results also indicated a differential influence on mitochondrial respiration levels with changing ATP demands and a difference in the accumulation of some key products of cell fermentation (lactic acid, glutamic acid, and succinic acid). Overall, these results highlight the differential influence of HA MWs on the metabolic state of GBM. Citation Format: Ashwin A. Bale, Rohit Bhargava, Brendan Harley. Hyaluronic acid influences amino acid metabolism in glioblastoma's U87-MG cell line in a 2D culture via LAT1 transporter expression abstract. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Brain Cancer; 2023 Oct 19-22; Minneapolis, Minnesota. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84 (5 Suppl₁): Abstract nr B052.