Overexpression of FABP3 promotes apoptosis through inducing mitochondrial impairment in embryonic cancer cells

Fatty acid‐binding protein 3 (FABP3) is a low‐molecular‐weight protein with a distinct tissue distribution that may play an important role in fatty acid transport, cell growth, cellular signaling, and gene transcription. Previously, we have found that FABP3 was involved in apoptosis‐associated congenital cardiac malformations, but the underlying mechanisms have not yet been described. In the present study, we investigated the characteristics of mitochondrial dysfunction in embryonic cancer cells (P19 cells) that overexpressed FABP3. We demonstrated that in FABP3‐overexpressing P19 cells a lower cellular ATP production was accompanied by a dramatic decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), despite the lack of a substantial decrease in the mtDNA copy number. In addition, FABP3 overexpression also led to an imbalance in mitochondrial dynamics and to excess intracellular reactive oxygen species production. Collectively, our results indicated that overexpression of FABP3 in P19 cells caused mitochondrion dysfunction that might be responsible for the development of FABP3‐induced apoptosis. J. Cell. Biochem. 113: 3701–3708, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.