Ribosomal protein L10 in mitochondria serves as a regulator for ROS level in pancreatic cancer cells

Tumorigenesis is commonly known as a complicated process, in which reactive oxygen species (ROS) plays a critical role to involve in signal transduction, metabolism, cell proliferation and differentiation. Previously, ribosomal protein L10 (RPL10) was suggested to possess extra-ribosomal functions in pancreatic cancer cells in addition to being proposed as a tumor suppressor or transcription co-regulator. To better understand the relationship between RPL10 and tumorigenic potential in pancreatic cancer cells, chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing reveals that RPL10 is unlikely to be a transcription factor without a specific binding motif for gene transcription. Additionally, transcriptome analysis indicates that RPL10 could regulate the expression of proteins related to ROS production. Moreover, RPL10 in mitochondria is closely associated with the regulation of ROS level by affecting Complex I activity and the subsequent events. Together, the present study suggests that the regulation of ROS level by mitochondrial RPL10 is one of the major extra-ribosomal functions in pancreatic cancer cells, which could be used as an indicator for the tumorigenesis of pancreatic cancer.