Gasotransmitters in cancers: multiple mechanisms, crosstalk, and therapeutic implications.

Nitric oxide, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen sulfide, once recognized primarily for their toxicity or vasoactive properties, have emerged as multifaceted signaling molecules in cancer biology. This review provides an update on current findings on how gasotransmitters support cancer processes. Gasotransmitters act through activation of soluble guanylate cyclase, redox-dependent post-translational modifications such as S-nitrosylation and persulfidation, mitochondrial metabolic regulation, calcium signaling, and crosstalk with pathways, and telomerase-related networks. In addition, the same gasotransmitter has either pro-tumorigenic or anti-tumorigenic effects. Overall, this review highlights gasotransmitters as diverse regulators of cancer progression and indicates the potential of precisely modulating gasotransmitter signaling in targeted cancer therapy.