Background
Histones are subjected to a variety of enzyme catalyzed modifications, including acetylation, methylation, phosphorylation, ubiquitylation, etc. The Warburg effect, which originally described increased production of lactate in cancer, is associated with diverse cellular processes such as angiogenesis, hypoxia, polarization of macrophages and activation of T cells. This phenomenon is intimately linked to several diseases including neoplasia, sepsis and autoimmune diseases. Lactate, which is converted from pyruvate in tumor cells, is widely known as an energy source and metabolic by-product. Zhang et al. (Nature, 2019) reveal that histone lactylation is a previously unknown histone modification, derived from the cellular metabolite lactate.
Cellular location
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