T Cell Metabolism in Autoimmune Diseases

Metabolism generates energy for organisms to sustain all kinds of biological functions, such as cell growth and cell apoptosis. The immune system requires an adequate energy supply for its optimal function [1]. During the activation and differentiation of T cells, the balance between glycolysis and lipid oxidation shifts in order to cater for the cell’s energy requirements [2]. There is increasing evidence that shows how metabolism has an important role in regulating immunity, and a series of molecules have been described to play a functional role in both metabolism and the regulation of immune responses [3; 4; 5]. Uncovering the transcriptional regulation of the proteins participating in these metabolic processes allows us to understand how metabolism regulates T cell fate [6]. A set of noncoding RNAs called microRNA (miRNA), can also regulate these metabolic networks by binding to the 3’UTR of its target transcripts [7; 8; 9].