Jing Fan

Mammalian cellular metabolism is a dynamic process that consists of thousands of interconnected reactions and regulatory interactions. While the architecture of metabolic networks is defined by the genome, actual metabolic activity through the pathways varies greatly. Dynamic reprogramming of metabolism enables cells to meet metabolic needs associated with specific cellular states and cellular functions (such as supporting proliferation or activating immune function), and adapt to changes in the environment. The overarching goal of my research is to understand how mammalian cellular metabolism is reprogrammed in response to changes in the environment and cellular state, and how key metabolic activities in turn affect cell physiology. To study this, I combine systematic approaches, especially metabolomics, lipidomics and fluxomics, with targeted biochemical and genetic techniques. Currently, my lab focuses on two main areas: (1) understanding how metabolic reprogramming affects the inflammatory state in macrophages and neutrophils, and (2) understanding how specific conditions in the tumor microenvironment impact the metabolism and behavior of immune cells and cancer cells.