Cancer Cell: Revealing the mechanism of arachidonic acid and interferon-gamma synergistically induce ferroptosis in tumor cells

March 8, 2022 / Bio Valley BIOON / --- Cytokines are a class of proteins that act as messenger molecules in the body

It has been found that ferroptosis occurs in tumor cells and plays a role in cancer immunity

"Targeting ACSL4 may help to understand and expand possible immunotherapy options," said corresponding author Weiping Zou, MD, PhD, director of the Center of Excellence for Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy at the University of Michigan's Roger Cancer Center

Zou explained that this natural mechanism begins with the release of interferon gamma from activated T cells

Image via Cancer Cell, 2022, doi:10.

The new study shows that combining gamma interferon with arachidonic acid, a fatty acid found in the tumor microenvironment, activates ACSL4, alters tumor cell lipid patterns, and naturally induces tumor cell ferroptosis

The Zou lab is the first to identify the role of ferroptosis in cancer immunity and therapy, highlighting the possibility of targeting this pathway to improve the effectiveness of immune checkpoint blockade immunotherapy in cancer patients

These new findings add more knowledge to how ferroptosis plays a role in cancer patients, which Zou hopes will prompt further research

"This study raises many questions for us to continue to explore, especially around the fundamental biology of ferroptosis, including the involvement of different fatty acids and dietary lipids, the different roles that immune cells play in ferroptosis," Zou said.

References:

Peng Liao et al.