Through the eons of time, out of all possible configurations, nature has selected glucose not only as a vital source of energy to sustain life but also as the molecule who's structure supplies the appropriate elements required for a cell to grow and multiply. This understanding, at least in part, explains the profound effects that the analog of glucose, 2-deoxy-d-glucose, has been shown to have on as common and widespread diseases as cancer, viral infection, aging-related morbidity, epilepsy, and others. This review is confined to summarizing some of the salient findings of this remarkable compound as they relate mainly to cancer.
Keywords: 2-deoxy-d-glucose; apoptosis; autophagy; endoplasmic reticulum stress; glycosylation; hypoxia; viral replication.
© 2014 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.