Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team May 15, 2025 15 hours, 13 minutes ago
Medical News: Disrupted Cell Metabolism in Immune Cells Found to Drive Inflammation Across Multiple Diseases
Scientists from the University of Cape Coast in Ghana and Jiangsu University in China have uncovered how a specific malfunction in the body’s immune system—known as macrophage immunometabolism dysregulation—can worsen inflammation and contribute to a wide range of serious diseases, including diabetes, sepsis, cancer, autoimmune conditions, and even infections like COVID-19.
How Metabolism Gone Wrong in Immune Cells Can Worsen Inflammation and Disease
This
Medical News report highlights a major review conducted by a collaborative research team from several departments at the University of Cape Coast (including the Departments of Microbiology and Immunology, Biochemistry, Biomedical Science, Molecular Biology, and Forensic Sciences) and the International Genome Centre and Department of Immunology at Jiangsu University, China. Their findings provide fresh insights into how immune cells called macrophages can misbehave when their internal energy systems go haywire, turning helpful immune responses into harmful inflammation that damages the body.
How Macrophages Change Roles and Go Rogue
Macrophages are white blood cells that help defend the body by detecting and removing infections and damaged cells. Under normal circumstances, they either promote inflammation to fight threats (as M1 macrophages) or reduce inflammation and promote healing (as M2 macrophages). But when the internal metabolic systems of these cells—responsible for generating energy—are disrupted, the balance between M1 and M2 cells is thrown off.
The researchers explain how certain metabolic pathways such as glycolysis, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, fatty acid oxidation, and amino acid metabolism affect the behavior and fate of these immune cells. For example, high levels of glycolysis (sugar breakdown) in macrophages can promote a constant inflammatory state, leading to severe problems like insulin resistance in diabetes, or even life-threatening sepsis.
Key Findings on Diseases
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Autoimmune Diseases: Macrophages with excessive pro-inflammatory activity were linked to the worsening of diseases like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. A compound called epigallocatechin-3-gallate was shown to suppress these harmful cells.
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Sepsis: The enzyme PKM2, critical in glycolysis, was found to be elevated in sepsis patients, driving dangerous inflammation. Blocking PKM2 could be a way to prevent deadly immune overreactions.
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Cancer: Interestingly, while chronic inflammation is usually bad, in some cancers like ovarian cancer, higher levels of M1 macrophages actually helped patients survive longer, showing that inflammation’s role can be complex.
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Infections: From bacteria to viruses like HIV and SARS-CoV-2, many pathogens manipula
te macrophage metabolism to favor their own survival. In COVID-19, for example, the virus activates M1 macrophages to spread more easily in the lungs.
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Diabetes and Obesity: Fat tissue in obese individuals attracts M1 macrophages, which in turn worsen insulin resistance. Researchers highlighted how regulating key proteins like GRP94 or using natural products like Celastrol might help restore metabolic balance.
Hope for New Treatments
The research team suggests that targeting specific enzymes and metabolites that influence macrophage metabolism could help rebalance the immune system. For instance, compounds like PFK158 can block inflammatory pathways, while natural substances such as β-hydroxybutyrate and Celastrol offer anti-inflammatory benefits without harsh side effects.
One particularly promising area is the use of special hydrogels (like SCE2 and EHO-85) that not only reduce inflammation but also promote healing in diabetic wounds. These innovations might soon become part of a new generation of immunomodulatory treatments.
Conclusion
This review reinforces a growing understanding that controlling inflammation is not just about suppressing the immune system, but also about adjusting the metabolic 'fuel' that drives immune cells. By shifting the energy supply of macrophages, scientists may be able to convert harmful immune reactions into healing ones. The potential therapeutic applications—ranging from natural plant compounds to cutting-edge bioengineered patches—could reshape how doctors treat chronic inflammation, diabetes, infections, and even cancer. However, clinical trials are still needed to verify safety, dosage, and effectiveness before widespread use.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed journal: Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332225003361
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https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/breaking-scientists-from-la-jolla-institute-for-immunology-discover-new-subsets-of-cd4-helper-t-cells
https://www.thailandmedical.news/articles/immunology
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