Research on the two emerging hallmarks of cancer, reprogramming of cellular energy metabolism and immune system evasion has gained momentum in the last decade and opened new avenues for cancer management. Complex metabolic changes that occur in cancer cells during tumorigenesis are well-documented, whereas immunometabolism is an emerging field that focuses on metabolic modulation of immune cells as an important determinant of their phenotype and function. Despite marvelous advances in the field of cancer immunotherapy, our understanding of metabolic interactions of cancer and immune cells in the context of both tumor microenvironment (TME) as well as immunotherapy is limited.
The main problem we would like to address in this Research Topic is how a better understanding of metabolic reprogramming of both cancer and immune cells, their interaction, as well as the use of metabolism-targeting drugs, could improve current cancer immunotherapy and its synergy with chemo-, radio- and targeted therapy. Many recent findings demonstrated that metabolic modulation of myeloid, CD8+, T, and NK cells are instrumental in overcoming immune suppression and enhancing therapeutic efficiencies, such as adoptive cell therapy (ACT) and chimeric antigen receptor engineered T-cell (CAR-T) therapy. Furthermore, there is accumulating evidence showing that activation of immune checkpoint signaling can influence the metabolic profile of both cancer and immune cells. Therefore, a better and more precise understanding of metabolic interactions between cancer and immune cells is necessary for the development of new combinatorial therapies and better treatment outcomes.
The scope of this Research Topic is to unravel the complexities of the interplay between metabolic regulation and the immune response in cancer, and their implications on therapeutic targeting and overcoming therapy resistance. Specific themes to be addressed, but are not limited to, include:
1) The role of metabolism in immune cells activation and differentiation;
2) Mechanisms of metabolic interactions in TME;
3) Therapeutic targeting of metabolic vulnerabilities ;
4) Implications of cancer and immune cells' metabolism on immunotherapy;
5) Combinatorial strategies with conventional therapies for optimization of cancer management.
Please note: manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics or computational analysis of public genomic or transcriptomic databases which are not accompanied by validation (clinical cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) are out of scope for this section and will not be accepted as part of this Research Topic.
Research on the two emerging hallmarks of cancer, reprogramming of cellular energy metabolism and immune system evasion has gained momentum in the last decade and opened new avenues for cancer management. Complex metabolic changes that occur in cancer cells during tumorigenesis are well-documented, whereas immunometabolism is an emerging field that focuses on metabolic modulation of immune cells as an important determinant of their phenotype and function. Despite marvelous advances in the field of cancer immunotherapy, our understanding of metabolic interactions of cancer and immune cells in the context of both tumor microenvironment (TME) as well as immunotherapy is limited.
The main problem we would like to address in this Research Topic is how a better understanding of metabolic reprogramming of both cancer and immune cells, their interaction, as well as the use of metabolism-targeting drugs, could improve current cancer immunotherapy and its synergy with chemo-, radio- and targeted therapy. Many recent findings demonstrated that metabolic modulation of myeloid, CD8+, T, and NK cells are instrumental in overcoming immune suppression and enhancing therapeutic efficiencies, such as adoptive cell therapy (ACT) and chimeric antigen receptor engineered T-cell (CAR-T) therapy. Furthermore, there is accumulating evidence showing that activation of immune checkpoint signaling can influence the metabolic profile of both cancer and immune cells. Therefore, a better and more precise understanding of metabolic interactions between cancer and immune cells is necessary for the development of new combinatorial therapies and better treatment outcomes.
The scope of this Research Topic is to unravel the complexities of the interplay between metabolic regulation and the immune response in cancer, and their implications on therapeutic targeting and overcoming therapy resistance. Specific themes to be addressed, but are not limited to, include:
1) The role of metabolism in immune cells activation and differentiation;
2) Mechanisms of metabolic interactions in TME;
3) Therapeutic targeting of metabolic vulnerabilities ;
4) Implications of cancer and immune cells' metabolism on immunotherapy;
5) Combinatorial strategies with conventional therapies for optimization of cancer management.
Please note: manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics or computational analysis of public genomic or transcriptomic databases which are not accompanied by validation (clinical cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) are out of scope for this section and will not be accepted as part of this Research Topic.