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Updated: Oct 2, 2025

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Published on: January 31, 2025
Fatty Acid Metabolism and Cancer Immunotherapy
Yuting Luo1, Hanbing Wang1, Baorui Liu1
1The Comprehensive Cancer Centre of Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School & Clinical Cancer Institute of Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210008, China.
Purpose Of Review:
In this review, we update the latest findings on the impacts of FA metabolism reprogramming on the phenotypes and functions of immune cells in tumor-related immune responses. We also summarize the combinatorial interventions of FA metabolism, which improve the effects of current immunotherapies.
Recent Findings:
Multiple studies have shown that either the abnormality in signaling pathways or nutrition competition in the TME can lead to phenotypic reprogramming of FA metabolism and functional changes in tumor-infiltrating immune cells, thereby influencing the therapeutic effects of cancer immunotherapies. Accordingly, regulating FA metabolism in immune cells has emerged and become promising approaches to synergize with immunotherapies. One of the mechanisms behind suboptimal therapeutic effects of immunotherapies is metabolic reprogramming of the TME that impairs immunosuppressive activity. FA metabolism is a crucial process involved in the survival and function of primary immune cells. It is of great significance to explore the feasibility of overcoming FA metabolic barriers to improve cancer immunotherapy.
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