title: Futility sustains memory T cells.
abstract: Memory T cells display a distinct metabolic profile compared to effector T cells. In this issue of Immunity, O'Sullivan et al. (2014) report that memory T cells activate a "futile cycle" of de novo fatty-acid synthesis and concurrent fatty-acid oxidation to generate ATP for cell survival.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, The Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.
authors.forename: Samuel E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Weinberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, The Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA. Electronic address: nav@northwestern.edu.
authors.forename: Navdeep S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Chandel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D007156:Immunologic Memory / Q000276:immunology*; D008066:Lipolysis / Q000276:immunology*; D002787:Sterol Esterase / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D002787:Sterol Esterase