A guide to immunometabolism for immunologists

Immunometabolism is emerging an important area of immunological research, but for many immunologists the complexity of the field can be daunting. Here, the authors provide an overview of six key metabolic pathways that occur in immune cells and explain what is known (and what is still to be uncovered) concerning their effects on immune cell function. In recent years a substantial number of findings have been made in the area of immunometabolism, by which we mean the changes in intracellular metabolic pathways in immune cells that alter their function. Here, we provide a brief refresher course on six of the major metabolic pathways involved (specifically, glycolysis, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, the pentose phosphate pathway, fatty acid oxidation, fatty acid synthesis and amino acid metabolism), giving specific examples of how precise changes in the metabolites of these pathways shape the immune cell response. What is emerging is a complex interplay between metabolic reprogramming and immunity, which is providing an extra dimension to our understanding of the immune system in health and disease.