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Updated: Jan 14, 2026

Saturated Fatty Acids Induce Ceramide-associated Macrophage Cell Death
Published on: October 31, 2017
The emerging role of fatty acid-binding protein 3 (FABP3) in cancer
William Warren1, Myles Osborn1, Andy Yates1
1Artelo Biosciences Limited, Mereside, Alderley Park, Alderley Edge, Cheshire SK10 4TG, United Kingdom.
Abstract:
Fatty acid-binding proteins (FABPs) are intracellular transporter proteins that regulate lipid transport, signalling, and homeostasis. In this review, we assess whether upregulation of FABP3 is oncogenic. Cancers where overexpression of FABP3 was shown to be oncogenic included breast, brain, nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC), gastric, melanomas, and leiomyosarcoma. FABP3 knockdown in brain, oesophageal, and melanoma cell lines reduced proliferation, migration, invasion, and colony formation in vitro, and attenuated glioma tumour burden in vivo. In tumours and the tumour immune microenvironment, the protumoral mechanisms of FABP3 are associated with hypoxia, ferroptosis, endothelial growth factor receptor resistance, and lipid metabolism. Emerging mechanisms primarily relate to its role as a chaperone of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Overall, FABPs appear to be promising targets for novel cancer treatments.
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