Mitochondrial Biogenesis Inhibitors for Anticancer Therapy: A Review of Recent Patents

Recent studies show that enhanced mitochondrial biogenesis can “fuel” the cancer cells to grow and migrate. It is therefore proposed that inhibiting the mitochondrial biogenesis could be a new approach to cancer therapy. This review summarizes recent patents and papers in the development of small molecule inhibitors of key regulators responsible for tumor mitochondrial biogenesis, including PPARγcoactivator-1α(PGC-1α), PPARγcoactivator-1β, estrogen-related receptor family (ERRs), estrogen receptor α(ERα), mammalian target of rapamycin, c-Myc and PPARs. Keywords: Cancer, energy metabolism, inhibitors, mitochondrial biogenesis, PGC-1α, tumor migration.