Acute myeloid leukemia mitochondria hydrolyze ATP to support oxidative metabolism and resist chemotherapy

Abstract

OxPhos inhibitors have struggled to show a clinical benefit because of their inability to distinguish healthy from cancerous mitochondria. Herein, we describe an actionable bioenergetic mechanism unique to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) mitochondria. Unlike healthy cells that couple respiration to ATP synthesis, AML mitochondria support inner-membrane polarization by consuming ATP. Matrix ATP consumption allows cells to survive bioenergetic stress. Thus, we hypothesized AML cells may resist chemotherapy-induced cell death by reversing the ATP synthase reaction. In support, BCL-2 inhibition with venetoclax abolished OxPhos flux without affecting mitochondrial polarization. In surviving AML cells, sustained mitochondrial polarization depended on matrix ATP consumption. Mitochondrial ATP consumption was further enhanced in AML cells made refractory to venetoclax, consequential to down-regulations in the endogenous F₁-ATPase inhibitor ATP5IF1. Knockdown of ATP5IF1 conferred venetoclax resistance, while ATP5IF1 overexpression impaired F₁-ATPase activity and heightened sensitivity to venetoclax. These data identify matrix ATP consumption as a cancer cell-intrinsic bioenergetic vulnerability actionable in the context of BCL-2 targeted chemotherapy.