Patient-derived lymphoblastoid cell lines harboring mitochondrial DNA mutations as tool for small molecule drug discovery

Objective: Mitochondrial diseases are a group of devastating disorders for which there is no transformative cure. The majority of therapies for mitochondrial disease - approved, previously tested, or currently in development - are small molecules. The implementation of better cell-based models of mitochondrial disease can accelerate and improve the accuracy of small molecule drug discovery. The objective of this study is to evaluate the use of patient-derived lymphoblastoid cell lines for small molecule research in mitochondrial disease. Results: Five lymphoblastoid cell lines derived from mitochondrial disease patients harboring point mutations in mtND1, mtND4, or mtATP6 were characterized in two high throughput assays assessing mitochondrial function. In a pilot "clinical trial in a dish" experiment, the efficacy of idebenone - an approved therapy for mitochondrial disease - on the lymphoblastoid cell lines was tested. Idebenone increased the basal respiration of all lymphoblastoid cell lines except those harboring the 8993T>G point mutation in mtATP6. Our results posit lymphoblastoid cell lines as a strong model for mitochondrial disease research with small molecules and have implications for the clinical efficacy of idebenone. © 2018 The Author(s).