Prognostic role of mitochondrial pyruvate carrier in isocitrate dehydrogenase-mutant glioma

OBJECTIVE Gliomas are one of the most common types of primary brain tumors. Recent studies have supported the importance of key genetic alterations, including isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutations and 1p19q codeletion, in glioma prognosis. Mutant IDH produces 2-hydroxyglutarate from α-ketoglutarate, a key metabolite of the Krebs cycle. The mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) is composed of MPC1 and MPC2 subunits and is functionally essential for the Krebs cycle. The authors sought to explore the impact of MPC1 and MPC2 expression on patient prognosis. METHODS Genomic and clinical data in patients with lower-grade glioma (WHO grades II and III) from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) were evaluated using Kaplan-Meier analysis and hazards modeling. Validation was conducted with additional data sets, including glioblastoma. RESULTS A total of 286 patients with lower-grade glioma (mean age 42.7 ± 13.5 years, 55.6% males) included 54 cases of IDH-wild type (18.9%); 140 cases of IDH-mutant, 1p19q-intact (49.0%); and 85 cases of IDH-mutant, 1p19q-codeleted (29.7%) tumors. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that an MPC1 z-score > 0 distinguished better survival, particularly in IDH-mutant (p < 0.01) but not IDH-wild type tumors. Conversely, an MPC2 z-score > 0 identified worsened survival, particularly in IDH-mutant (p < 0.01) but not IDH-wild type tumors. Consistently, neither MPC1 nor MPC2 was predictive in a glioblastoma data set containing 5% IDH-mutant cases. Within the IDH-stratified lower-grade glioma data set, MPC1 status distinguished improved survival in 1p19q-codeleted tumors (p < 0.05), whereas MPC2 expression delineated worsened survival in 1p19q-intact tumors (p < 0.01). A hazards model identified IDH and 1p19q status, age (p = 0.01, HR = 1.03), Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS) score (p = 0.03, HR = 0.97), and MPC1 (p = 0.003, HR = 0.52) but not MPC2 (p = 0.38) as key variables affecting overall survival. Further validation confirmed MPC1 as an independent predictor of lower-grade glioma. A clinical risk score using IDH and 1p19q status, age, KPS score, and MPC1 and MPC2 z-scores defined 4 risk categories for lower-grade glioma; this score was validated using a secondary glioma data set. CONCLUSIONS These results support the importance of MPC, especially MPC1, in improving prognostication of IDH-mutant tumors. The generation of a risk score system directly translates this finding to clinical application; however, further research to improve the molecular understanding of the role of MPC in the metabologenomic regulation of gliomas is warranted.