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Background: Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) plays an important role in vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) phenotypic switching, which is an early pathogenic event in various vascular remodeling diseases (VRDs). However, the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. Methods: An IP‒LC‒MS/MS assay was conducted to identify new binding partners of G6PD involved in the regulation of VSMC phenotypic switching under platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB) stimulation. Co-IP, GST pull-down, and immunofluorescence colocalization were employed to clarify the interaction between G6PD and voltage-dependent anion-selective channel protein 1 (VDAC1). The molecular mechanisms involved were elucidated by examining the interaction between VDAC1 and apoptosis-related biomarkers, as well as the oligomerization state of VDAC1. Results: The G6PD level was significantly elevated and positively correlated with the synthetic characteristics of VSMCs induced by PDGF-BB. We identified VDAC1 as a novel G6PD-interacting molecule essential for apoptosis. Specifically, the G6PD-NTD region was found to predominantly contribute to this interaction. G6PD promotes VSMC survival and accelerates vascular neointimal hyperplasia by inhibiting VSMC apoptosis. Mechanistically, G6PD interacts with VDAC1 upon stimulation with PDGF-BB. By competing with Bax for VDAC1 binding, G6PD reduces VDAC1 oligomerization and counteracts VDAC1–Bax-mediated apoptosis, thereby accelerating neointimal hyperplasia. Conclusion: Our study showed that the G6PD–VDAC1–Bax axis is a vital switch in VSMC apoptosis and is essential for VSMC phenotypic switching and neointimal hyperplasia, providing mechanistic insight into early VRDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mitochondrial metabolism has been proposed as an attractive target for breast cancer therapy. The discovery of new mechanisms underlying mitochondrial dysfunction will facilitate the development of new metabolic inhibitors to improve the clinical treatment of breast cancer patients. DYNLT1 (Dynein Light Chain Tctex-Type 1) is a key component of the motor complex that transports cellular cargo along microtubules in the cell, but whether and how DYNLT1 affects mitochondrial metabolism and breast cancer has not been reported. Methods: The expression levels of DYNLT1 were analyzed in clinical samples and a panel of cell lines. The role of DYNLT1 in breast cancer development was investigated using in vivo mouse models and in vitro cell assays, including CCK-8, plate cloning and transwell assay. The role of DYNLT1 in regulating mitochondrial metabolism in breast cancer development is examined by measuring mitochondrial membrane potential and ATP levels. To investigate the underlying molecular mechanism, many methods, including but not limited to Co-IP and ubiquitination assay were used. Results: First, we found that DYNLT1 was upregulated in breast tumors, especially in ER + and TNBC subtypes. DYNLT1 promotes the proliferation, migration, invasion and mitochondrial metabolism in breast cancer cells in vitro and breast tumor development in vivo. DYNLT1 colocalizes with voltage-dependent anion channel 1 (VDAC1) on mitochondria to regulate key metabolic and energy functions. Mechanistically, DYNLT1 stabilizes the voltage-dependent anion channel 1 (VDAC1) by hindering E3 ligase Parkin-mediated VDAC1 ubiquitination and degradation. Conclusion: Our data demonstrate that DYNLT1 promotes mitochondrial metabolism to fuel breast cancer development by inhibiting Parkin-mediated ubiquitination degradation of VDAC1. This study suggests that mitochondrial metabolism can be exploited by targeting the DYNLT1-Parkin-VDAC1 axis to improve the ability of metabolic inhibitors to suppress cancers with limited treatment options, such as triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) exhibits mitochondrial dysfunctions associated with dysregulated metabolism, brain inflammation, synaptic loss, and neuronal cell death. As a key protein serving as the mitochondrial gatekeeper, the voltage-dependent anion channel-1 (VDAC1) that controls metabolism and Ca2+ homeostasis is positioned at a convergence point for various cell survival and death signals. Here, we targeted VDAC1 with VBIT-4, a newly developed inhibitor of VDAC1 that prevents its pro-apoptotic activity, and mitochondria dysfunction. Methods: To address the multiple pathways involved in AD, neuronal cultures and a 5 × FAD mouse model of AD were treated with VBIT-4. We addressed multiple topics related to the disease and its molecular mechanisms using immunoblotting, immunofluorescence, q-RT-PCR, 3-D structural analysis and several behavioral tests. Results: In neuronal cultures, amyloid-beta (Aβ)-induced VDAC1 and p53 overexpression and apoptotic cell death were prevented by VBIT-4. Using an AD-like 5 × FAD mouse model, we showed that VDAC1 was overexpressed in neurons surrounding Aβ plaques, but not in astrocytes and microglia, and this was associated with neuronal cell death. VBIT-4 prevented the associated pathophysiological changes including neuronal cell death, neuroinflammation, and neuro-metabolic dysfunctions. VBIT-4 also switched astrocytes and microglia from being pro-inflammatory/neurotoxic to neuroprotective phenotype. Moreover, VBIT-4 prevented cognitive decline in the 5 × FAD mice as evaluated using several behavioral assessments of cognitive function. Interestingly, VBIT-4 protected against AD pathology, with no significant change in phosphorylated Tau and only a slight decrease in Aβ-plaque load. Conclusions: The study suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction with its gatekeeper VDAC1 is a promising target for AD therapeutic intervention, and VBIT-4 is a promising drug candidate for AD treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Targeting mitochondrial oncoproteins presents a new concept in the development of effective cancer therapeutics. ATAD3A is a nuclear-encoded mitochondrial enzyme contributing to mitochondrial dynamics, cholesterol metabolism, and signal transduction. However, its impact and underlying regulatory mechanisms in cancers remain ill-defined. Methods: We used head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) as a research platform and achieved gene depletion by lentiviral shRNA and CRISPR/Cas9. Molecular alterations were examined by RNA-sequencing, phospho-kinase profiling, Western blotting, RT-qPCR, immunohistochemistry, and immunoprecipitation. Cancer cell growth was assessed by MTT, colony formation, soft agar, and 3D cultures. The therapeutic efficacy in tumor development was evaluated in orthotopic tongue tumor NSG mice. Results: ATAD3A is highly expressed in HNSCC tissues and cell lines. Loss of ATAD3A expression suppresses HNSCC cell growth and elicits tumor regression in orthotopic tumor-bearing mice, whereas gain of ATAD3A expression produces the opposite effects. From a mechanistic perspective, the tumor suppression induced by the overexpression of the Walker A dead mutant of ATAD3A (K358) produces a potent dominant-negative effect due to defective ATP-binding. Moreover, ATAD3A binds to ERK1/2 in the mitochondria of HNSCC cells in the presence of VDAC1, and this interaction is essential for the activation of mitochondrial ERK1/2 signaling. Most importantly, the ATAD3A-ERK1/2 signaling axis drives HNSCC development in a RAS-independent fashion and, thus, tumor suppression is more effectively achieved when ATAD3A knockout is combined with RAS inhibitor treatment. Conclusions: These findings highlight the novel function of ATAD3A in regulating mitochondrial ERK1/2 activation that favors HNSCC development. Combined targeting of ATAD3A and RAS signaling may potentiate anticancer activity for HNSCC therapeutics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: More and more evidence suggests that cancer is a mitochondrial metabolic disease recently and mitochondria dysfunction is critical to tumorigenesis. As a gatekeeper of mitochondria, the voltage-dependent anion channel 1 (VDAC1) is associated with the development of breast cancer (BC). However, its potential mechanism and clinical significance remain unclear; thus, in this research, we aimed to explore it. Methods: VDAC1 expression in BC tissues and normal tissues was obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and validated by datasets from the gene expression omnibus (GEO) database. Then, the relationships between VDAC1 expression and clinicopathological features were analyzed. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves were used to identify the diagnostic value of VDAC1. The prognostic value was evaluated by Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox regression analysis. VDAC1 with its co-expression genes were subjected to enrichment analysis to explore potential mechanisms in BC and the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed. At last, the association between VDAC1 expression and infiltration levels of immune cell infiltration by various methods, as well as their corresponding markers, was analyzed. We also analyzed the correction between VDAC1 expression and eight immune checkpoint genes and the tumor immune dysfunction and exclusion (TIDE) scores of each BC sample in TCGA were calculated and the differences between high and low VDAC1 expression groups were analyzed. Results: VDAC1 expression was remarkably elevated in BC (p < 0.001), and high expression of VDAC1 was associated with the positive expression of ER (p = 0.004), PR (p = 0.033), and HER2 (p = 0.001). ROC analysis suggested that VDAC1 had diagnosed value in BC. The Kaplan-Meier analysis suggested that higher expression of VDAC1 was associated with shorter overall survival (OS), and further Cox regression analysis revealed that VDAC1 was an independent factor of unfavorable prognosis in BC patients. Enrichment analysis of VDAC1 and its co-expression suggested that VDAC1 was related to the regulation of mitochondrial energy metabolism and protein modification, and the HIF-1 singing pathway might be the potential mechanism in BC. Notably, we found that VDAC1 expression was infiltration levels of most types of immune cells, as well as the expression of marker genes of immune cells. The ICGs PDCD1, CTLA4, LAG3, SIGLEC15, and TIGIT were negatively corrected with VDAC1 expression in BC. TIDE scores between the low and high expression groups showed no difference. Conclusion: Overexpressed VDAC1 in BC could be severed as a novel biomarker for diagnosis and VDAC1 was an independent factor for adverse prognosis prediction. Our study revealed that VDAC1 might inhibit tumor immunity and might be a novel therapeutic target in BC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: ATF2 mediated cytochrome c release is the formation of a channel with some unknown factors larger than that of the individual proteins. BHS-only proteins (BH3s), such as Bim, could induce BAX and VDAC, forming a new channel. According to this facts, we can speculated that there is possible signal relationship with BH3s and ATF2, which is associated with mitochondrial-based death programs. Methods: The growth inhibitory effects of mitochondrial ATF2 were tested in cancer cell lines B16F10, A549, EG7, and LL2. Apoptosis was measured by flow cytometry. The effects of ATF2 and levels of apoptosis regulatory proteins were measured by Western blotting. The interaction of proteins were evaluated by immunoprecipitation analysis. The in vivo antitumor activity of mitochondrial ATF2 were tested in xenograft B16F10 models. Results: Genotoxic stress enabled mitochondrial ATF2 accumulation, perturbing the HK1-VDAC1 complex, increasing mitochondrial permeability, and promoting apoptosis. ATF2 inhibition strongly reduced the conformational activation of Bim, suggesting that Bim acts downstream of ATF2. Although Bim downregulation had no effect on ATF2 activation, Bim knockdown abolished VDAC1 activation; the failure of VDAC1 activation in Bim-depleted cells could be reversed by the BH3-only protein mimic ABT-737. We also demonstrate that silencing of ATF2 in B16F10 cells increases both the incidence and prevalence of tumor xenografts in vivo, whereas stably mitochondrial ATF2 transfection inhibited B16F10 tumor xenografts growth. Conclusions: Altogether, these results show that ATF2 is a component of the apoptosis machinery that involves a hierarchical contribution of ATF2, Bim, and VDAC1. Our data offer new insight into the mechanism of mitochondrial ATF2 in mitochondrial apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: ATF2 mediated cytochrome c release is the formation of a channel with some unknown factors larger than that of the individual proteins. BHS-only proteins (BH3s), such as Bim, could induce BAX and VDAC, forming a new channel. According to this facts, we can speculated that there is possible signal relationship with BH3s and ATF2, which is associated with mitochondrial-based death programs., Methods: The growth inhibitory effects of mitochondrial ATF2 were tested in cancer cell lines B16F10, A549, EG7, and LL2. Apoptosis was measured by flow cytometry. The effects of ATF2 and levels of apoptosis regulatory proteins were measured by Western blotting. The interaction of proteins were evaluated by immunoprecipitation analysis. The in vivo antitumor activity of mitochondrial ATF2 were tested in xenograft B16F10 models., Results: Genotoxic stress enabled mitochondrial ATF2 accumulation, perturbing the HK1-VDAC1 complex, increasing mitochondrial permeability, and promoting apoptosis. ATF2 inhibition strongly reduced the conformational activation of Bim, suggesting that Bim acts downstream of ATF2. Although Bim downregulation had no effect on ATF2 activation, Bim knockdown abolished VDAC1 activation; the failure of VDAC1 activation in Bim-depleted cells could be reversed by the BH3-only protein mimic ABT-737. We also demonstrate that silencing of ATF2 in B16F10 cells increases both the incidence and prevalence of tumor xenografts in vivo, whereas stably mitochondrial ATF2 transfection inhibited B16F10 tumor xenografts growth., Conclusions: Altogether, these results show that ATF2 is a component of the apoptosis machinery that involves a hierarchical contribution of ATF2, Bim, and VDAC1. Our data offer new insight into the mechanism of mitochondrial ATF2 in mitochondrial apoptosis.