Polarization and asymmetry in T cell metabolism.

T cell activation results in a rapidly proliferating T cell endowed with a metabolic phenotype necessary for growth and division. However, before the cell can proceed towards this burst of cell division a phase of quiescence occurs, during which the basic mechanisms governing regulation of metabolic reprograming are established. This review focuses on key cellular processes controlling early metabolic regulation and how these circuits of metabolic control dictate distinct cellular fates upon the first asymmetric division.