Multiomics and Single-Cell Insights Reveal a Lysophosphatidic Acid-Mediated Resistant Mechanism to Third-generation EGFR-TKI in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

[PURPOSE] Third-generation EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) have revolutionized the treatment of EGFR-mutant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, acquired resistance remains a significant challenge. This study investigates the metabolic mechanisms driving third-generation EGFR-TKI resistance.

[EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN] We conducted plasma metabolomics analysis on 216 longitudinal samples from 186 patients with NSCLC enrolled in the clinical trial of rezivertinib (NCT03386955). Additionally, multiomics profiling of rezivertinib-resistant cell lines, functional in vitro experiments, and single-cell RNA sequencing analyses of 215 patients with NSCLC were integrated to reveal underlying mechanisms.

[RESULTS] Nonresponder patients exhibited elevated glycerophospholipids and dysregulated lysophospholipid (LPL) metabolism. Unsupervised clustering identified two patient subgroups, with cluster 1 (characterized by high LPL levels) associated with poorer survival (P = 0.022). A metabolite-based predictive model achieved robust performance [AUC: 0.7762 (training) and 0.7485 (test)]. Longitudinal analyses demonstrated LPLs and lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) accumulation during the resistance process. Integrated multiomics analyses highlighted epithelial-mesenchymal transition and glycerophospholipid reprogramming in rezivertinib-resistant cells. Functional assays confirmed that LPA promoted cell migration and invasion and attenuated the efficacy of third-generation EGFR-TKI, whereas disruption of the LPA-LPA receptor signaling axis reversed LPA-mediated resistance. Single-cell RNA sequencing identified an LPA-secreting malignant subset (cluster c4), characterized by enhanced epithelial-mesenchymal transition activation and extensive microenvironmental cross-talk through Wnt, TGF-β, and extracellular matrix signals.

[CONCLUSIONS] Our study highlights the pivotal role of LPA-mediated signaling and metabolic reprogramming in third-generation EGFR-TKI resistance. Targeting LPA production or its downstream pathways may offer novel therapeutic strategies to overcome resistance. This study provides critical metabolic insights for managing EGFR-mutant NSCLC.