Identification of a candidate PRODH allosteric inhibitor MBTP-15324: modulation of proline metabolite profiles and ECM-associated gene-expression changes in lung cancer cells

Current proline dehydrogenase (PRODH) inhibitors lack scaffold diversity. Through virtual screening, microscale thermophoresis, and molecular dynamics simulations, we identified MBTP-15324 as a candidate novel PRODH allosteric inhibitor (Kd = 1.45 μM). In PRODH-overexpressing lung cancer cells (A549 and LLC), MBTP-15324 significantly attenuated cell viability, colony formation, and migration. Furthermore, multi-omics analyses revealed that this putative inhibitor partially reversed arginine-proline metabolic dysregulation and downregulated transcriptional programs associated with inflammation, cell adhesion, and the extracellular matrix (ECM). In conclusion, MBTP-15324 provides a novel-scaffold chemical starting point for future PRODH-targeted therapies and metabolic interventions in lung cancer.