Fig. 3

Functional polarization of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) is influenced by multiple metabolites present in the TME. Extracellular metabolites not only serve as energy sources but also act as environmental cues to regulate the immune phenotype of TAMs. Lipids, succinate, α-Ketoglutarate, amino acids, adenosine and lactate are all implicated in fine-tuning TAM function. Abbreviations: α-KG, α-ketoglutarate; ERS, endoplasmic reticulum stress; FAO, fatty acid oxidation; HIF-1α, hypoxia inducible factor-1α; IRE1, inositol-requiring enzyme 1; ITA, itaconate; JAK, Janus Kinase 1; OXPHOS, oxidative phosphorylation; PHD, prolyl hydroxylase; PPARγ, peroxisome proliferator activation receptor gamma; ROS, reactive oxygen species; SDH, succinate dehydrogenase; STAT3, signal transducer and activator of transcription; TCA, tricarboxylic acid; XBP1, x-box binding protein 1 (Created with BioRender.com)