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IMMUNOMETABOLISM

A reactive metabolite as an immune suppressant

Nature Immunology volume 21, pages 497–498 (2020)Cite this article

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Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) occupy sites of chronic inflammation and suppress CD8+ T cell function. A new study describes the transfer of the metabolite methylglyoxal (MG) to T cells, which mediates this immunosuppressive mechanism.

The immunosuppressive activity of MDSCs is an important yet mysterious aspect of the immune-evasive tumor microenvironment. In this issue of Nature Immunology, Baumann et al. uncover a novel mechanism for the MDSC-dependent metabolic and functional paralysis of CD8+ T cells, which involves the cytosolic transfer of the toxic dicarbonyl-molecule MG to T cells via cell-to-cell transmission1.

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Fig. 1: Methylglyoxal as an immune suppressant in the tumor microenvironment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA

    Vijyendra Ramesh & Jason W. Locasale

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  1. Vijyendra Ramesh
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  2. Jason W. Locasale
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Correspondence to Jason W. Locasale.

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Competing interests

J.W.L. advises Nanocare Technologies, Raphael Pharmaceuticals and Restoration Foodworks.

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Ramesh, V., Locasale, J.W. A reactive metabolite as an immune suppressant. Nat Immunol 21, 497–498 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41590-020-0664-y

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