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Abstract

Competition for nutrients like glucose can metabolically restrict T cells and contribute to their hyporesponsiveness during cancer. Metabolic adaptation to the surrounding microenvironment is therefore key for maintaining appropriate cell function. For instance, cancer cells use acetate as a substrate alternative to glucose to fuel metabolism and growth. Here, we show that acetate rescues effector function in glucose-restricted CD8₊ T cells. Mechanistically, acetate promotes histone acetylation and chromatin accessibility and enhances IFN-ɣ gene transcription and cytokine production in an acetyl-CoA synthetase (ACSS)-dependent manner. Ex vivo acetate treatment increases IFN-ɣ production by exhausted T cells, whereas reducing ACSS expression in T cells impairs IFN-ɣ production by tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and tumor clearance. Thus, hyporesponsive T cells can be epigenetically remodeled and reactivated by acetate, suggesting that pathways regulating the use of substrates alternative to glucose could be therapeutically targeted to promote T cell function during cancer.