Warburg hypothesis

The Warburg hypothesis, proposed by the German biochemist Otto Warburg in the 1920s, suggests that cancer cells primarily rely on aerobic glycolysis for energy production, even in the presence of sufficient oxygen, which is different from normal cells that typically generate energy through oxidative phosphorylation in the mitochondria. This phenomenon, known as the "Warburg effect," indicates that cancer cells preferentially convert glucose to lactate instead of fully oxidizing it to carbon dioxide and water.