Abstract
Targeted inhibition of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) complex generation is an emerging and promising cancer treatment strategy, but limited targets and specific inhibitors have been reported. Leucine-rich pentatricopeptide repeat-containing protein (LRPPRC) is an atypical RNA-binding protein that regulates the stability of all 13 mitochondrial DNA-encoded mRNA (mt-mRNA) and thus participates in the synthesis of the OXPHOS complex. LRPPRC is also a prospective therapeutic target for lung adenocarcinoma, serving as a promising target for OXPHOS inhibition. In this study, we identified Demethylzeylasteral (T-96), a small molecule extracted from the Chinese herb Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f., as a novel inhibitor of LRPPRC. T-96 directly bound to the RNA-binding domain of LRPPRC, inhibiting its interaction with mt-mRNA. This led to instability in both mt-mRNA and LRPPRC protein. Treatment with T-96 significantly reduced the mRNA and protein levels of the OXPHOS complex. As a consequence of LRPPRC inhibition, T-96 treatment induced a defect in the synthesis of the OXPHOS complex, inhibiting mitochondrial aerobic respiration and ATP synthesis. Moreover, T-96 exhibited potent antitumor activity for lung adenocarcinoma in vitro and in vivo, and the antitumor effect of T-96 was dependent on LRPPRC expression. In conclusion, this study not only identified the first traditional Chinese medicine monomer inhibitor against OXPHOS complex biosynthesis as well as a novel target of Demethylzeylasteral, but also shed light on the unique antitumor mechanism of bioactive compounds derived from traditional Chinese medicine.