In addition to creating an acidic microenvironment that promotes tumor progression, lactate accumulation also causes lactylation of adenylate kinase 2 (AK2) at K28, compromising its kinase activity and disrupting energy homeostasis in HCC cells, thereby facilitating tumor proliferation, invasion, and metastasis as shown in several xenograft mouse models [39]. This evidence concerns the gene AK2 and neoplasm.