Ubellacker Lab

Targeting FSP1 triggers ferroptosis in lung cancer - Nature The ferroptosis suppressor protein FSP1 has a critical role in ferroptosis protection of tumours across multiple in vivo models and is linked to worse prognosis in human lung adenocarcinoma, suggestin...

new out in Nature, targeting FSP1 to trigger ferroptosis
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Triggering cell death in metastatic melanoma may pave the way for new cancer treatments | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health A Harvard Chan School study offers new ways to understand cancer and its vulnerabilities, and suggests that certain protein inhibitors could potentially be effective treatments for the disease.

Please read more about this publication in this article in the Harvard Newsletter: Triggering cell death in metastatic melanoma may pave the way for new cancer treatments

Lymph node environment drives FSP1 targetability in metastasizing melanoma - Nature Targeting FSP1 in lymph nodes has considerable potential for blocking melanoma progression.

Melanoma cells that spread to lymph nodes depend on FSP1 to survive, revealing a new metabolic vulnerability. New study in Nature by @mariopalma.bsky.social @ubellackerlab.bsky.social and colleagues shows that blocking FSP1 triggers ferroptosis and suppresses tumor growth in lymph node metastases.

Lymph node environment drives FSP1 targetability in metastasizing melanoma - Nature Targeting FSP1 in lymph nodes has considerable potential for blocking melanoma progression.

Excited to share my postdoctoral work, out today in Nature! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

We discovered that melanoma cells in lymph nodes gain a targetable FSP1 dependency that limits melanoma progression.

Be sure to also check out the exciting work from the Pappagianopoulos Lab, showcasing the impact of FSP1 inhibition in vivo in lung tumors! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Excited to share our work @nature.com! Postdoc @mariopalma.bsky.social, with major contributions from @retickerflynn.bsky.social and collaborators, discovered melanoma cells in lymph nodes gain a targetable FSP1 dependency that limits progression. #TeamFSP1

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

FSP1-mediated lipid droplet quality control prevents neutral lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis - Nature Cell Biology Lange et al. identify a lipid droplet quality control pathway in which FSP1 safeguards stored neutral lipids from lipid peroxidation, thereby preventing the induction of ferroptosis.

Excited to share our study out in @natcellbio.nature.com! Led by @mikelangelipid.bsky.social, we identify the first #LipidDroplet lipid quality control pathway: LD-localized FSP1 protects stored lipids from oxidative damage and prevents LD-initiated #ferroptosis.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

FSP1-mediated lipid droplet quality control prevents neutral lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis - Nature Cell Biology Lange et al. identify a lipid droplet quality control pathway in which FSP1 safeguards stored neutral lipids from lipid peroxidation, thereby preventing the induction of ferroptosis.

Excited to share my postdoc work @olzmannlab.bsky.social! We found lipid droplets, the cell’s lipid storage depots, are subject to oxidative damage and are protected by FSP1. Loss of FSP1 triggers droplet peroxidation and cell death, revealing a new layer of lipid quality control!

shorturl.at/B5XYD

Thank you, James! 😊

Hot off the presses! Was an honor to team up with Scott Dixon @stanforduniversity.bsky.social on this Nature Cancer review. We reflect on hurdles that have slowed translation of ferroptosis-directed therapies and share ideas on what it will take to bring these therapies to the clinic. rdcu.be/eBbqV

Fantastic lymph node protocols from @retickerflynn.bsky.social Lab, Cort Breuer, and team. Check it out!

Interested in studying lymph node metastasis? Check out our protocol by Cort Breuer out today in @natprot.nature.com
bsky.app/profile/nat...

Spontaneous and experimental models of lymph node metastasis Nature Protocols, Published online: 13 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41596-025-01200-5We provide two procedures to cover distinct approaches for the initiation of lymph node metastases in mice: one for studying the metastatic cascade in tumorigenic cells and the other for studying the effect of metastatic formations in the host.

New Article! Spontaneous and experimental models of lymph node metastasis

Truly honored to receive this FASEB award! I am very grateful to be part of the welcoming & supportive ferroptosis community and am appreciative of this kind recognition! Thank you ~

Riboflavin metabolism shapes FSP1-driven ferroptosis resistance https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.05.668651v1

Vitamin B2 metabolism promotes FSP1 stability to prevent ferroptosis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.05.668752v1

Join me in Boston October 6th for a 1-day conference on #mappingbiology to transform #cancertherapeutics. Register by September 25th to benefit from the complimentary (free) admission! Topics, speakers, and talk opportunities here: abcam.me/mappingbiolo...
@abcamofficial.bsky.social

Awesome study, congrats to all! 🎉

Conservation and divergence of metabolic phenotypes between patient tumours and matched xenografts - Nature Metabolism Rao and Cai et al. perform a detailed metabolic comparison between primary tumours from patients and their matching xenografts, which identify conserved as well as divergent metabolic patterns.

1/Patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) are used in preclinical testing of cancer therapies, including metabolic therapies. We determined which metabolic properties are retained, and which are lost, when melanomas from patients are implanted and passaged as PDXs in mice.
www.nature.com/articles/s42...

Huge thank you to @olzmannlab.bsky.social and Scott Dixon for a phenomenal 1st FASEB Ferroptosis conference! I’m grateful to be part of such a collaborative community and it was especially great to meet all the brilliant trainees whose insights are clearly shaping the exciting future of the field! 🎉

Wow, super cool findings for targeting FSP1/the immune system in ferroptosis! 🎉

Selective disruption of lipid peroxide homeostasis in intratumoral regulatory T cells by targeting FSP1 enhances cancer immunity A burgeoning approach to treat cancer is the pharmacological induction of ferroptotic cell death of tumor cells. However, the impact of disrupting anti-ferroptotic pathways in the broader tumor microe...

New preprint w/ the Dupage lab led by @jgcastillo.bsky.social! FSP1 KO in Tregs / Tcells promotes tumor suppression, highlighting the therapeutic value potential of FSP1 inhibition. New paradigm for targeting ferroptosis in immune system (not just in cancer cells). 🤩
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

So lucky to have you onboard as the first founding postdoc of the ULab, @mariesabatier.bsky.social, to help build the lab from the beginning!

It’s over 100°F in Boston, and though both the weather and funding climates are intense, we took a well-deserved ice cream break to celebrate the progress, and the incredible people past and present, behind it all. Happy 3rd birthday, ULab! 🎉

Congrats on this fantastic work! 🎉

Congratulations, super exciting work! 🎉

Cocrystal structure reveals the mechanism of FSP1 inhibition by FSEN1 | PNAS FSP1 is an FAD-dependent oxidoreductase that uses NAD(P)H to regenerate the reduced forms of lipophilic quinone antioxidants, such as coenzyme Q10 ...

Thrilled this paper is out! We solved the first cocrystal structure of FSP1 with an inhibitor (FSEN1), providing mechanistic insight & a foundation for medchem. Led by Amalia Megarioti & Sitao Zhang. A terrific collaboration with Da Jia.
Brief Skytorial!
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Join us next Monday: June 2, 3-4PM off the Harvard Longwood Quad for two great cell death discussions on ferroptosis in breast cancer metastasis from
@mariesabatier.bsky.social
(Ubellacker Lab) and on thiol-reductive stress from Maolin Ge (Bar-Peled Lab)!

Harvard Chan scientists participate in a rigorous application process for federal grants to conduct their vital health research. The government has now terminated nearly every single one of those grants.

Indeed, our Outstanding Investigator Award from the National Cancer Institute, which funded all research personnel and activities in my modest-sized lab of 5 has been unceremoniously terminated.