Myoferlin controls mitochondrial structure and activity in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, and affects tumor aggressiveness

Oncogene. 2018 Aug;37(32):4398-4412. doi: 10.1038/s41388-018-0287-z. Epub 2018 May 3.

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the third leading cause of cancer-related death. Therapeutic options remain very limited and are based on classical chemotherapies. Energy metabolism reprogramming appears as an emerging hallmark of cancer and is considered a therapeutic target with considerable potential. Myoferlin, a ferlin family member protein overexpressed in PDAC, is involved in plasma membrane biology and has a tumor-promoting function. In the continuity of our previous studies, we investigated the role of myoferlin in the context of energy metabolism in PDAC. We used selected PDAC tumor samples and PDAC cell lines together with small interfering RNA technology to study the role of myoferlin in energetic metabolism. In PDAC patients, we showed that myoferlin expression is negatively correlated with overall survival and with glycolytic activity evaluated by 18F-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography. We found out that myoferlin is more abundant in lipogenic pancreatic cancer cell lines and is required to maintain a branched mitochondrial structure and a high oxidative phosphorylation activity. The observed mitochondrial fission induced by myoferlin depletion led to a decrease of cell proliferation, ATP production, and autophagy induction, thus indicating an essential role of myoferlin for PDAC cell fitness. The metabolic phenotype switch generated by myoferlin silencing could open up a new perspective in the development of therapeutic strategies, especially in the context of energy metabolism.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adenocarcinoma / metabolism*
  • Adenocarcinoma / pathology
  • Adenosine Triphosphate / metabolism
  • Autophagy / physiology
  • Calcium-Binding Proteins / metabolism*
  • Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / metabolism*
  • Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / pathology
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Proliferation / physiology
  • Energy Metabolism / physiology
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / physiology
  • Glycolysis / physiology
  • Humans
  • Membrane Proteins / metabolism*
  • Mitochondria / metabolism*
  • Mitochondria / pathology
  • Muscle Proteins / metabolism*
  • Oxidative Phosphorylation
  • Pancreatic Neoplasms / metabolism*
  • Pancreatic Neoplasms / pathology
  • RNA, Small Interfering / metabolism

Substances

  • Calcium-Binding Proteins
  • MYOF protein, human
  • Membrane Proteins
  • Muscle Proteins
  • RNA, Small Interfering
  • Adenosine Triphosphate