Abstract
Mitochondria control bioenergetics and cell fate decisions, but how they influence nuclear gene expression is understood poorly. Here, we show that deletion or reduction in the levels of cyclophilin D (CypD, also called Ppif), a mitochondrial matrix peptidyl prolyl isomerase and apoptosis regulator, results in increased cell proliferation and enhanced cell migration and invasion. These responses are associated with extensive transcriptional changes, modulation of a chemokine/chemokine receptor gene signature, and activation of the pleiotropic inflammatory mediator, STAT3. In the absence of CypD, active STAT3 enhances cell proliferation via accelerated entry into S-phase and stimulates autocrine/paracrine cell motility through Cxcl12-Cxcr4-directed chemotaxis. Therefore, CypD directs mitochondria-to-nuclei inflammatory gene expression in normal and tumor cells. This pathway may contribute to malignant traits under conditions of CypD modulation.