Oncogenic-driven lipogenic metabolism is a common hallmark of colorectal cancer (CRC) progression. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop novel therapeutic strategies for metabolic reprogramming. Herein, the metabolic profiles in the plasma between CRC patients and paired healthy controls were compared using metabolomics assays. Matairesinol downregulation was evident in CRC patients, and matairesinol supplementation significantly represses CRC tumorigenesis in azoxymethane/dextran sulfate sodium (AOM/DSS) colitis-associated CRC mice. Matairesinol rewired lipid metabolism to improve the therapeutic efficacy in CRC by inducing mitochondrial damage and oxidative damage and blunting ATP production. Finally, matairesinol-loaded liposomes significantly promoted the enhanced antitumor activity of 5-Fu/leucovorin combined with oxaliplatin (FOLFOX) in CDX and PDX mouse models by restoring chemosensitivity to the FOLFOX regimen. Collectively our findings highlight matairesinol-mediated lipid metabolism reprogramming as a novel druggable strategy to restore CRC chemosensitivity, and this nanoenabled approach for matairesinol will improve the chemotherapeutic efficacy with good biosafety.
Keywords: colorectal cancer; lipid droplet; liposome nanoparticles; metabolomics; triglyceride metabolism.