Pub Date : 2025-01-01DOI: 10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.001
Yuanyuan Wu , Jiangbin Ye , Zhenglong Gu
Numerous mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variants are associated with cancers, yet the causal link remains inconclusive. Using DddA-derived cytosine base editors, we induced de novo truncating mutations in MT-ND5 in HEK293 cells, establishing heteroplasmy, the coexistence of mutant and wild-type mtDNA. This study aimed to investigate the full molecular etiology following these deleterious mtDNA mutations, particularly in oncogenesis. We found that low to moderate heteroplasmic levels of the mutants were sufficient to impair mitochondrial functions and alter cellular redox status. Cellular adaptation to elevated ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species), energy crisis, and altered redox status was observed across varying heteroplasmy levels. Increased oncogenic potential was confirmed through in vitro oncogenesis and in vivo xenograft assays. Transcriptomic analysis revealed upregulated migration, invasion, and genome instability pathways, and downregulated ROS scavenging pathways. Our results demonstrate that MT-ND5 mutations drive cancer progression by increasing cellular ROS and genome instability, and by altering the redox balance and epigenetic landscapes.
{"title":"Exploring the oncogenic impact of heteroplasmic de novo MT-ND5 truncating mutations","authors":"Yuanyuan Wu , Jiangbin Ye , Zhenglong Gu","doi":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Numerous mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variants are associated with cancers, yet the causal link remains inconclusive. Using DddA-derived cytosine base editors, we induced <em>de novo</em> truncating mutations in <em>MT-ND5</em> in HEK293 cells, establishing heteroplasmy, the coexistence of mutant and wild-type mtDNA. This study aimed to investigate the full molecular etiology following these deleterious mtDNA mutations, particularly in oncogenesis. We found that low to moderate heteroplasmic levels of the mutants were sufficient to impair mitochondrial functions and alter cellular redox status. Cellular adaptation to elevated ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species), energy crisis, and altered redox status was observed across varying heteroplasmy levels. Increased oncogenic potential was confirmed through <em>in vitro</em> oncogenesis and <em>in vivo</em> xenograft assays. Transcriptomic analysis revealed upregulated migration, invasion, and genome instability pathways, and downregulated ROS scavenging pathways. Our results demonstrate that <em>MT-ND5</em> mutations drive cancer progression by increasing cellular ROS and genome instability, and by altering the redox balance and epigenetic landscapes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100931,"journal":{"name":"Mitochondrial Communications","volume":"3 ","pages":"Pages 26-43"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143839281","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-01DOI: 10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.002
Shiyuan Chen , Jiangbin Ye , Zhenglong Gu
{"title":"Mitochondrial heterogeneity: within and between cells","authors":"Shiyuan Chen , Jiangbin Ye , Zhenglong Gu","doi":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.002","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":100931,"journal":{"name":"Mitochondrial Communications","volume":"3 ","pages":"Pages 52-53"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144656677","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-01DOI: 10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.003
Eiti Rautela , Savannah Sauve , Nikki Kovac , Edana Cassol , David Dyment , Martin Holcik
Mitochondrial diseases (MDs) are a significant patient burden and are linked to the dysregulation of various metabolic processes and cellular energy production. Additionally, mitochondria play a central role in regulating immune function and inflammatory response. This study aimed to examine the connection between MD and immune dysfunction, including inflammation as a specific immune response to infection. A scoping literature review and retrospective chart review were conducted. The scoping review followed the five-stage methodology framework by Arksey and O'Malley, extracting 1823 articles from PubMed using Covidence as managing software, with full texts of 10 articles analyzed. A retrospective patient chart review was conducted on 92 patients with a confirmed diagnosis of MD from the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario. The scoping review identified cases of MDs associated with inflammation, including individuals with POLG-associated disease. Immune dysfunction was observed in a subset of complex MDs, particularly in individuals with biallelic variation in POLGF and ATAD3A, who had a heavy burden of disease. The results from both the scoping and retrospective chart reviews suggest an association between complex MD and altered inflammatory and immune functions.
{"title":"Are patients with mitochondrial diseases prone to inflammatory and immune dysfunction: A scoping review and retrospective chart analysis","authors":"Eiti Rautela , Savannah Sauve , Nikki Kovac , Edana Cassol , David Dyment , Martin Holcik","doi":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.03.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mitochondrial diseases (MDs) are a significant patient burden and are linked to the dysregulation of various metabolic processes and cellular energy production. Additionally, mitochondria play a central role in regulating immune function and inflammatory response. This study aimed to examine the connection between MD and immune dysfunction, including inflammation as a specific immune response to infection. A scoping literature review and retrospective chart review were conducted. The scoping review followed the five-stage methodology framework by Arksey and O'Malley, extracting 1823 articles from PubMed using Covidence as managing software, with full texts of 10 articles analyzed. A retrospective patient chart review was conducted on 92 patients with a confirmed diagnosis of MD from the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario. The scoping review identified cases of MDs associated with inflammation, including individuals with POLG-associated disease. Immune dysfunction was observed in a subset of complex MDs, particularly in individuals with biallelic variation in POLGF and ATAD3A, who had a heavy burden of disease. The results from both the scoping and retrospective chart reviews suggest an association between complex MD and altered inflammatory and immune functions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100931,"journal":{"name":"Mitochondrial Communications","volume":"3 ","pages":"Pages 16-25"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143783085","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-01DOI: 10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.12.001
Natalya Kozhukhar, Mikhail F. Alexeyev
Mitochondrial respiratory chain inhibitors (MRCIs) are indispensable for studying cellular bioenergetics and its effects on various cellular processes. However, their off-target (those not mediated by respiratory chain inhibition) effects remain incompletely understood, even though their comprehension is crucial for the accurate interpretation of experimental outcomes. Here, we use four isogenic cell line pairs, which either have mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) or lack it (ρ+ or ρ0 cells, respectively), to assess the possible off-target effects of widely used MRCIs antimycin A, oligomycin A, rotenone, and carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP). We examined clonogenic growth of ρ0 cells and ρ+ cells under conditions that either require the functional respiratory chain or do not. Unexpectedly, ρ0 cells were sensitive to rotenone and antimycin A, even though these cells lack functional complex I and complex III, respectively, suggesting a nonspecific effect of these drugs. Furthermore, ρ0 cells were more sensitive to CCCP than their ρ+ counterparts. Intriguingly, the loss of the clonogenic potential in ρ+ 143B cells could not be precisely correlated to the decrement of the mitochondrial inner membrane potential. These findings underscore the significance of off-target effects of MRCIs, which must be carefully considered when designing, conducting, and interpreting experiments involving these inhibitors.
{"title":"Off-target effects of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation inhibitors are common and can compromise the viability of cultured cells","authors":"Natalya Kozhukhar, Mikhail F. Alexeyev","doi":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.12.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.12.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mitochondrial respiratory chain inhibitors (MRCIs) are indispensable for studying cellular bioenergetics and its effects on various cellular processes. However, their off-target (those not mediated by respiratory chain inhibition) effects remain incompletely understood, even though their comprehension is crucial for the accurate interpretation of experimental outcomes. Here, we use four isogenic cell line pairs, which either have mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) or lack it (ρ<sup>+</sup> or ρ<sup>0</sup> cells, respectively), to assess the possible off-target effects of widely used MRCIs antimycin A, oligomycin A, rotenone, and carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP). We examined clonogenic growth of ρ<sup>0</sup> cells and ρ<sup>+</sup> cells under conditions that either require the functional respiratory chain or do not. Unexpectedly, ρ<sup>0</sup> cells were sensitive to rotenone and antimycin A, even though these cells lack functional complex I and complex III, respectively, suggesting a nonspecific effect of these drugs. Furthermore, ρ<sup>0</sup> cells were more sensitive to CCCP than their ρ<sup>+</sup> counterparts. Intriguingly, the loss of the clonogenic potential in ρ<sup>+</sup> 143B cells could not be precisely correlated to the decrement of the mitochondrial inner membrane potential. These findings underscore the significance of off-target effects of MRCIs, which must be carefully considered when designing, conducting, and interpreting experiments involving these inhibitors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100931,"journal":{"name":"Mitochondrial Communications","volume":"3 ","pages":"Pages 99-108"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145683865","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-01DOI: 10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.10.001
Wenwen Xi , Zhiyan Zhang , Yi Su , Shuyi Wang , Yangzheng Ou , Bin Lu
LONP1 is a conserved mitochondrial AAA + protease central to mitochondrial proteostasis. This review summarizes its structural features, protease-chaperone functions, and roles in metabolic regulation (heme/sulfur/steroid pathways) and disease. In cancer, LONP1 overexpression drives tumor progression via metabolic reprogramming, EMT induction, metastasis, and therapy resistance, establishing it as a pan-cancer therapeutic target. Inhibitors face delivery and selectivity challenges, prompting future strategies like mitochondrial-targeted delivery and allosteric modulators. Research directions include mechanistic studies and clinical translation for cancer and neurodegenerative disorders.
{"title":"Frontiers in LONP1 research: Unraveling molecular mechanisms, disease associations, and therapeutic strategies","authors":"Wenwen Xi , Zhiyan Zhang , Yi Su , Shuyi Wang , Yangzheng Ou , Bin Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.10.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mitoco.2025.10.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>LONP1 is a conserved mitochondrial AAA + protease central to mitochondrial proteostasis. This review summarizes its structural features, protease-chaperone functions, and roles in metabolic regulation (heme/sulfur/steroid pathways) and disease. In cancer, LONP1 overexpression drives tumor progression via metabolic reprogramming, EMT induction, metastasis, and therapy resistance, establishing it as a pan-cancer therapeutic target. Inhibitors face delivery and selectivity challenges, prompting future strategies like mitochondrial-targeted delivery and allosteric modulators. Research directions include mechanistic studies and clinical translation for cancer and neurodegenerative disorders.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100931,"journal":{"name":"Mitochondrial Communications","volume":"3 ","pages":"Pages 79-86"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145415043","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}