Bad Cholesterol Uptake by CD36 in T-Cells Cripples Anti-Tumor Immune Response

Despite the advances in immunotherapies, effective against some types of cancer, progression of several types of carcinoma remains uncurable. Recent studies indicate that changes in lipid metabolism, aggravated by obesity, disable anti-tumor immune response. In the July issue of Immunity, Xu et al. use mouse models to demonstrate that certain types of oxidized lipids, transported by CD36, suppress the capacity of CD8(+) T lymphocytes to secrete cytotoxic molecules. This study sheds light on how lipid modifications in the tumor microenvironment make killer T cells incapable of inhibiting tumor growth.