 However, it is not completely clear how 2-DG inhibits cell growth.The fact that glycolysis is inhibited by 2-DG, seems not to be sufficient to explain why 2-DG treated cells stop growing.Because of its structural similarity to mannose, 2DG has the potential to inhibit N-glycosylation in mammalian cells and other systems, and as such induces ER stress and the Unfolded Protein Response (UPR) pathway.