A matter of time: temporal structure and functional relevance of macrophage metabolic rewiring

The response of macrophages to stimulation is a dynamic process which coordinates the orderly adoption and resolution of various immune functions. Accumulating work over the past decade has demonstrated that during the immune response macrophage metabolism is substantially rewired to support important cellular processes, including the production of bioactive molecules, intercellular communication, and the regulation of intracellular signaling and transcriptional programming. In particular, we discuss an important concept emerging from recent studies – metabolic rewiring during the immune response is temporally structured. We review the regulatory mechanisms that drive the dynamic remodeling of metabolism, and examine the functional implications of these metabolic dynamics.