Researchers have discovered that vitamin B2, also known as riboflavin, helps cancer cells survive by protecting them from ferroptosis, a type of cell death caused by iron-driven oxidative damage. The study, published in Nature Cell Biology, found that vitamin B2 supports a protein called FSP1, which strengthens the antioxidant defenses of tumor cells and prevents their destruction.
The researchers showed that blocking vitamin B2 metabolism makes cancer cells far more vulnerable to ferroptosis, highlighting a possible new target for cancer treatment. In laboratory models, the team used roseoflavin, a naturally occurring bacterial compound related to vitamin B2, to disrupt these protective pathways and successfully trigger cancer cell death.
Although there are currently no approved drugs that directly target this mechanism, scientists plan to develop new inhibitors for future preclinical testing. The findings may also have broader medical importance because ferroptosis is involved not only in cancer but also in neurodegenerative disorders and tissue injury.