Cysteine's metabolic fork: Sulfur partitioning shapes T cell function.

Grusdat, Melanie; Brenner, Dirk · Cell · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

T cells live or die by their metabolism, yet one nutrient can serve very different ends. In this issue of Cell, Kelly et al. show that cysteine's sulfur is partitioned between glutathione and iron-sulfur cluster synthesis. This routing drives CD8<sup>+</sup> T cell proliferation, effector function, and anti-tumor immunity.

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