OXPHOS mediators in acute myeloid leukemia patients: Prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for personalized medicine

Abstract

Background: Despite significant advances in comprehending its tumorigenic role, the prognostic and therapeutic potential of targeting oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remain obscure.

Methods: The prognostic value of ~ 200 mitochondrial/OXPHOS genes as candidate biomarkers was examined in AML patients over ~ 10 years follow-up using Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses. Furthermore, the transcript levels of the assessed markers were inspected in healthy bone marrow tissues and the dependencies of AML cells on the assessed genes were examined.

Results: Elevated levels of NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase subunit A6 (NDUFA6), succinate dehydrogenase complex flavoprotein subunit A (SDHA), solute carrier family 25 member 12 (SLC25A12), electron transfer flavoprotein subunit beta (ETFB), carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1A (CPT1A) and glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) were associated with poor overall survival of AML patients. SLC25A12, ETFB and CPT1A were overexpressed in AML compared to healthy tissues. Cytochrome B5 type A (CYB5A)^high, SLC25A12^high and GPX4^high AML patients displayed higher levels of circulating and engrafted blasts compared to low-expressing cohorts. NPM1 and SRSF2 mutations were frequent in SDHA^low and CPT1A^low AML patients respectively. FLT3-ITD, NPM1 and IDH1 mutations were prevalent in CPT1A^high AML patients. FLT3-ITD AMLs were more dependent on OXPHOS.

Conclusions: This study identifies NDUFA6 and SDHA as novel companion prognostic biomarkers which might present a rational strategy for personalized therapy of AML patients.

Keywords: Acute myeloid leukemia; Mitochondrial biomarker; Oxidative phosphorylation; Prognosis.