Mitochondrial serine catabolism safeguards maintenance of the hematopoietic stem cell pool in homeostasis and injury

Abstract

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) employ a very unique metabolic pattern to maintain themselves, while the spectrum of their metabolic adaptations remains incompletely understood. Here, we uncover a distinct and heterogeneous serine metabolism within HSCs and identify mouse HSCs as a serine auxotroph whose maintenance relies on exogenous serine and the ensuing mitochondrial serine catabolism driven by the hydroxymethyltransferase 2 (SHMT2)-methylene-tetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase 2 (MTHFD2) axis. Mitochondrial serine catabolism primarily feeds NAD(P)H generation to maintain redox balance and thereby diminishes ferroptosis susceptibility of HSCs. Dietary serine deficiency, or genetic or pharmacological inhibition of the SHMT2-MTHFD2 axis, increases ferroptosis susceptibility of HSCs, leading to impaired maintenance of the HSC pool. Moreover, exogenous serine protects HSCs from irradiation-induced myelosuppressive injury by fueling mitochondrial serine catabolism to mitigate ferroptosis. These findings reframe the canonical view of serine from a nonessential amino acid to an essential niche metabolite for HSC pool maintenance.