Ketone bodies as guardians of leukemic stemness through ferroptosis suppression.

Zhao, Xi; Zhuang, Li; Gan, Boyi · Cell Stem Cell · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Leukemia stem cells exploit cell-intrinsic ketogenesis to suppress ferroptosis and sustain disease propagation. In this issue, Han et al.<sup>1</sup> uncover a β-hydroxybutyrate-epigenetic-lipid remodeling axis that protects stemness by restraining ferroptosis, revealing a metabolic vulnerability with therapeutic potential.