Lactate-driven H3K18 lactylation promotes cisplatin resistance in bladder cancer via HNRNPF-Parkin mediated mitophagy

Here, we report that lactate-induced histone H3K18 lactylation (H3K18la) drives chemoresistance by activating a novel signaling axis that couples epigenetic regulation with mitochondrial quality control. Through integrative multi-omics analysis, we identified HNRNPF as a key effector downstream of H3K18la, with its promoter being directly enriched by H3K18la in cisplatin-resistant BCa cells.

Unexpectedly, HNRNPF, primarily known as an RNA-binding protein, promotes chemoresistance through a non-canonical mechanism: it directly interacts with the core mitophagy protein Parkin. Mechanistically, the RRM2 domain of HNRNPF binds the R0 domain of Parkin, facilitating Parkin’s recruitment to damaged mitochondria. This interaction potentiates Parkin’s E3 ubiquitin ligase activity, leading to enhanced ubiquitination of VDAC1 and robust activation of mitophagy.