Simple Summary
Mesothelioma is a highly malignant tumor with a poor prognosis, yet treatment options remain limited. Current therapies, including chemotherapy and immunotherapy, show only modest efficacy, highlighting the urgent need for new strategies. This study revealed that brefelin A strongly inhibits the proliferation of mesothelioma cell lines compared to immortalized mesothelial cells by inducing ferroptosis. Furthermore, the GPX4 inhibitor RSL3 selectively induced cell death in a subset of mesothelioma cell lines, particularly those classified as the epithelioid subtype. These findings suggest that inducing ferroptosis could represent a promising antitumor mechanism in mesothelioma and may provide a basis for novel therapeutic approaches specifically targeting particular histological subtypes of mesothelioma.
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Mesothelioma is a highly aggressive tumor with a poor prognosis that typically develops after a long latency period following asbestos exposure. Although immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy is increasingly used, the efficacy of standard treatments remains limited. This study aimed to explore ferroptosis induction as a potential therapeutic strategy for mesothelioma. Methods: We first screened microbial culture extracts collected from soil and marine environments to identify compounds with selective cytotoxicity against mesothelioma cells. Gene expression profiling was performed to investigate the mechanism of cell death induced by the identified compound. To assess intrinsic ferroptosis susceptibility, patient-derived mesothelioma cell lines and immortalized mesothelial cell lines were treated with RSL3, a GPX4 inhibitor. Results: Screening identified brefeldin A as a compound that selectively induces cell death in mesothelioma cells. Gene expression profiling revealed transcriptional changes consistent with ferroptosis induction. Treatment with RSL3 demonstrated marked variability in ferroptosis sensitivity across cell lines; the subgroup showing high sensitivity to RSL3 did not exhibit significant genetic alterations in NF2 or BAP1, but contained a significantly higher proportion of epithelioid tumors in histological classification. Conclusions: Our findings highlight ferroptosis induction as a promising antitumor mechanism in mesothelioma, particularly in the epithelioid subtype. While GPX4 inhibitors such as RSL3 are effective in vitro, further studies are needed to overcome pharmacological limitations and define molecular determinants of ferroptosis susceptibility, which may inform future personalized therapeutic strategies.