Increased formation of reactive oxygen species due to glucose depletion in primary cultures of rat thymocytes inhibits proliferation.

Glycolytic glucose degradation to lactate is the only way of energy production in mammalian cells that does not use oxygen, and is thus a means of reducing oxidative stress. The aim of this work was to study the effect on proliferation of progressive glucose depletion during the cell cycle of stimulated cultured rat thymocytes. It has been shown that under conditions of limited glucose supply, these cells increase the generation of reactive oxygen species. Because of the sensitivity of the stimulating transcription factor Sp1 to redox changes with respect to its DNA binding, gene expression of glycolytic enzymes is markedly suppressed. As a consequence, cell division does not occur in glucose depleted thymocytes.