{"title":"LM2I leads to CAD ubiquitination and liver cancer suppression through activation of ASS1.","authors":"Zhengnan Ming, Tiao Luo, Zizheng Zou, Wensong Luo, Xiyuan Hu, Ling Chen, Jiang Zhou, Xiaohe Liu, Mingquan Liu, Jijia Li, Dayou Ma, Suyou Liu, Zhiyong Luo","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025083","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025083","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The urea cycle occurs mainly in the liver and undergoes changes during hepatocarcinogenesis. Argininosuccinate synthase 1 (ASS1) is a key enzyme in the urea cycle and is expressed at low levels in certain cancers. LM2I, a specific activator of ASS1, exhibits significant antitumor activity. However, the antitumor mechanism of LM2I in liver cancer remains unclear. In this study, we find that LM2I is more effective for liver cancer cells with low ASS1 expression. The results of the IP-LC/MS experiments reveal that ASS1 interacts with CAD. The expressions of ASS1 and CAD in liver cancer tissues and cells are negatively correlated. LM2I promotes the ubiquitination of CAD protein through ASS1. LM2I inhibits the proliferation of liver cancer cells <i>in vivo</i> and <i>in vitro</i>. However, its efficacy is weak in liver cancer cells stably overexpressing CAD. The H&E staining results reveal that LM2I has no toxicity in mice. In terms of metabolism, LM2I increases the urea content and decreases the pyrimidine content in liver cancer cells. Overexpression of CAD can reduce the inhibitory effect of LM2I on pyrimidine. Pyrimidine supplementation facilitates the proliferation of liver cancer cells, particularly when they are treated with LM2I. In summary, ASS1 interacts with CAD, and LM2I enhances CAD degradation through the activation of ASS1, consequently inhibiting pyrimidine synthesis and the progression of liver cancer.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144191362","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kun Liu, Nan Huang, Chuanxiang Ding, Qiaoli Lang, Hongyu Chen, Hao Liang, Rendong Fang, Liangpeng Ge, Xi Yang
{"title":"A simple, rapid, and transgene-free strategy for the generation of transgenic pigs via precise editing of monoclonal porcine fetal fibroblasts.","authors":"Kun Liu, Nan Huang, Chuanxiang Ding, Qiaoli Lang, Hongyu Chen, Hao Liang, Rendong Fang, Liangpeng Ge, Xi Yang","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025044","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025044","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144179699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Na Lu, Qing Li, Linghan Duan, Rong Xu, Yaping Li, Fuli Shi, Zhiya Zhou, Yingqing Gan, Bo Hu, Jinhua Li, Xianhui He, Dongyun Ouyang, Qingbing Zha
{"title":"Andrographolide prevents necroptosis by suppressing the generation of reactive oxygen species.","authors":"Na Lu, Qing Li, Linghan Duan, Rong Xu, Yaping Li, Fuli Shi, Zhiya Zhou, Yingqing Gan, Bo Hu, Jinhua Li, Xianhui He, Dongyun Ouyang, Qingbing Zha","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025077","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025077","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Andrographolide (Andro), a natural product extracted from the Chinese traditional medicine herb <i>Andrographis paniculata</i>, has been applied for the treatment of diverse inflammatory diseases. However, its effects on necroptosis, a lytic form of cell death implicated in various inflammatory diseases, remain uncharacterized. In the present study, we investigate whether Andro and its derivatives can suppress necroptosis. Our results demonstrate that Andro notably inhibits necroptosis in the <i>in vitro</i> cellular models induced by either lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plus IDN-6556 or a combination of TNF-α, LCL-161 (Smac mimetic) and IDN-6556. In these cellular models, Andro inhibits the phosphorylation of receptor-interacting protein kinase 1 (RIPK1), RIPK3, and mixed lineage kinase domain-like pseudokinase (MLKL), as well as the formation of necrosomes. Specifically, Andro reduces the levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial superoxide (mtROS), preserves the mitochondrial membrane potential during necroptotic induction, and activates the antioxidant transcription factor nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2). Upon necroptotic stimulation, some mitochondrial proteins, such as Bcl-2 and Bak, oligomerize and co-localize with RIPK1, RIPK3, and phosphorylated MLKL (p-MLKL) in necrosomes. However, this process of necrosome formation can be prevented by Andro. In contrast, derivatives, including dehydroandrographolide, neoandrographolide, 14-deoxy-11,12-didehydroandrographolide, and 14-deoxyandrographolide, have no anti-necroptotic effects and fail to upregulate Nrf2. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that Andro specifically inhibits the RIPK1/RIPK3/MLKL signaling axis to suppress necroptosis, highlighting its therapeutic potential against necroptosis-related disorders.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144172195","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Vesicle-mediated transport-related gene SEC23A promotes cell proliferation by regulating cell cycle leading to gastric cancer progression.","authors":"Kang Wang, Shihao Rao, Xujin Wei, Wen Xie, Zhijun Hong, Jia Cheng, Xin Chen, Jingjing Hou, Huiqin Zhuo","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025051","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025051","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Gastric cancer (GC) is a highly prevalent and lethal gastrointestinal cancer. Dysregulation of vesicle-mediated transport-related genes (VMTRGs) is closely associated with tumorigenesis and disease progression. However, the prognostic value of VMTRGs in GC remains unclear. In this study, on the basis of our proteomics data and public databases, we identify differentially expressed VMTRGs in infiltrative-type GC with more metastases and recurrences identified by Ming's classification. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression identifies 3 VMTRGs ( <i>SEC23A</i>, <i>RAB31</i>, and <i>GABARAPL2</i>) from 41 infiltrative-associated VMTRGs, based on which a risk model Vesicle-Infiltrative Lasso System (VILS) is constructed, and its effectiveness and potential importance are validated by immune microenvironment analysis and functional enrichment analysis. As an independent prognostic factor for GC, VILS, combined with other clinically independent prognostic factors to form a nomogram, is effective in predicting GC prognosis. The VILS high-risk group has higher M2 macrophage and cancer-associated fibroblast infiltration, and lower infiltration of Th1 cells and natural killer cells. SEC23A is highly expressed in GC tissues and cells. The importance of SEC23A in GC cells is evaluated by <i>in vitro</i> assays including colony formation assay and CCK-8 assay, and by <i>in vivo</i> assay using a subcutaneous xenograft mouse model. The results show that SEC23A promotes GC cell proliferation and tumor growth through regulation of the cell cycle <i>in vitro</i> and <i>in vivo</i>. VILS provides excellent prognostic prediction for GC patients and is correlated with antitumor immune cell infiltration. <i>SEC23A</i>, the dominant gene of VILS, is highly expressed in GC and promotes GC growth and malignant progression through various molecular mechanisms. Our study reveals the effect of SEC23A on the proliferation of gastric cancer cells for the first time. Therefore, SEC23A has the potential to be a new therapeutic target for the diagnosis and treatment of GC.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144118542","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pingkaiqi He, Yihao Chen, Ming Xi, Shanshan Mo, Jiahong Chen, Chuanfan Zhong, Fengping Liu, Weide Zhong, Le Zhang, Junhong Deng, Jianming Lu, Chao Cai
{"title":"Integrated multi-omics and experimental approaches identify fascin actin-bundling protein 1 as an unfavorable prognostic biomarker in adrenocortical carcinoma.","authors":"Pingkaiqi He, Yihao Chen, Ming Xi, Shanshan Mo, Jiahong Chen, Chuanfan Zhong, Fengping Liu, Weide Zhong, Le Zhang, Junhong Deng, Jianming Lu, Chao Cai","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025067","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025067","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is a rare epithelial tumor originating from adrenal cortical cells, notable for its high degree of malignancy and poor prognosis. Owing to heterogeneity, patient outcomes vary significantly. Current biomarkers for ACC risk stratification have notable limitations. However, with the advancement of multi-omics sequencing technology, we can utilize multi-omics data to explore the heterogeneity of ACC, thereby identifying novel biomarkers. In this study, we establish multicenter transcriptomics and ATAC-seq data from the TCGA and GEO databases to perform weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) clustering and conduct comprehensive analyses of various ACC samples. These findings are integrated with univariate Cox regression, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, and survival analysis to identify potential biomarkers. We establish FSCN1 as an independent risk factor associated with poor ACC prognosis. ATAC-seq data demonstrate higher chromatin accessibility of FSCN1 in ACC patients with progressive disease. Immunohistochemical analysis confirms the expression of FSCN1 at the protein level, while functional cell assays reveal its role in promoting tumor invasion and proliferation. Functional enrichment analyses highlight the biological characteristics of FSCN1, and estimation of TME-infiltrating cells suggests that FSCN1 expression contributes to poor prognosis by inhibiting CD8 <sup>+</sup> T-cell infiltration within the ACC microenvironment. Finally, multi-omics analyses elucidate the role of FSCN1 at the mutation level. Taken together, our findings highlight FSCN1 as a promising novel biomarker and potential therapeutic target, underscoring its value in guiding the strategic management of ACC.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144092495","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A modified system to promote stemness of mouse intestinal stem cells by activating Nrf2 and α2-adrenergic receptor signaling pathway.","authors":"Xingyu Zhou, Li Yang, Sentao Song, Xiaolei Yin","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025078","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025078","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Intestinal stem cells (ISCs) maintain epithelial homeostasis through continuous self-renewal and differentiation, but their regulatory mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Using a simplified culture system, we identify two novel pathways that synergistically enhance stem cell characteristics: antioxidant signaling through 2-phospho-L-ascorbic acid (pVc) and α2-adrenergic receptor (α2-AR) activation by dexmedetomidine (Dex). Mechanistic studies reveal that pVc promotes stem cell maintenance through Nrf2-mediated antioxidant responses, while α2-AR activation functions through suppression of cAMP signaling. <i>In vivo</i> administration of these compounds enhances intestinal epithelial renewal while maintaining proper stem cell positioning and identity. Notably, α2-AR activation promotes regeneration after radiation injury by enhancing proliferation of stem cells produced by Bmi1 <sup>+</sup> cells in the post-injury process, demonstrating therapeutic potential. These findings advance our understanding of ISC regulation and suggest new strategies for protecting intestinal integrity during injury or disease.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144101048","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Min Ding, Xiaoshu Qi, Weijian Huang, Yan Lin, Hexin Yan
{"title":"Resident CD24 <sup>+</sup>LCN2 <sup>+</sup> LPCs aggravate fibrosis and inflammatory progression via the recruitment of TPPP3 <sup>+</sup>COL10A1 <sup>+</sup> macrophages in NASH.","authors":"Min Ding, Xiaoshu Qi, Weijian Huang, Yan Lin, Hexin Yan","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025081","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025081","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Resident CD24 <sup>+</sup>LCN2 <sup>+</sup> liver progenitor cells (LPCs) reportedly contribute to the expanding ductular reaction and macrophage-mediated inflammation associated with chronic liver damage. Both ductular reactions and macrophage-driven inflammation are associated with liver fibrosis and injury in various mouse liver disorders. This study aims to investigate the molecular phenotypes of LPCs and their regulatory mechanisms in humans with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) datasets are used to characterize the status and molecular phenotypes of LPCs in clinical NASH samples. To elucidate the regulatory mechanisms of LPCs, CellChat and NicheNet are employed to assess cell-cell communication between LPCs and other cell types. The findings are validated using RNA sequencing datasets associated with NASH progression, NASH mouse models (CDAHFD and HFD), and human NASH liver samples. Results show that resident CD24 <sup>+</sup>LCN2 <sup>+</sup> LPCs are identified and found to be significantly enriched in NASH patients. Cell communication analyses predict strong interactions between LPCs and proinflammatory macrophage subtypes. Additionally, in NASH, the liver recruits peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC)-derived macrophages and polarizes them into proinflammatory subtypes. The macrophage subtype MP-2 is identified as the primary recipient of LPC-derived signals, exhibiting marked hyperactivation of the NF-κB pathway and a strong association with liver fibrosis. Finally, the MP-2 markers COL10A1 and TPPP3 are characterized and validated. In summary, this study reveals that resident CD24 <sup>+</sup>LCN2 <sup>+</sup> LPCs are activated in NASH and contribute to fibrosis progression by promoting the activation of the proinflammatory COL10A1 <sup>+</sup>TPPP3 <sup>+</sup> macrophage subtype.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144085633","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"FGF8 promotes lipid droplet accumulation via the FGFR1/p-p38 axis in chondrocytes.","authors":"Minglei Huang, Haoran Chen, Jieya Wei, Caixia Pi, Mengmeng Duan, Xiaohua Pu, Zhixing Niu, Siqun Xu, Shasha Tu, Sijun Liu, Jiazhou Li, Li Zhang, Yang Liu, Hao Chen, Chunming Xu, Jing Xie","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025075","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025075","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Chondrocytes store lipids in the form of lipid droplets (LDs) and maintain cartilage lipid metabolic homeostasis by consuming or regenerating LDs. This modulation is largely mediated by a series of biochemical factors. Fibroblast growth factor 8 (FGF8) is one of the most important factors involved in the proliferation, differentiation, and migration of chondrocytes and has attracted increasing attention in the physiology and pathology of cartilage. However, the effect of FGF8 on LD accumulation in chondrocytes remains unclear. This study aims to elucidate the role of FGF8 in LDs and explore the underlying biomechanism involved. The results reveal that FGF8 promotes LD accumulation in chondrocytes by upregulating perilipin1 (Plin1) expression. FGF8 activates the cytoplasmic p-p38 signaling pathway via fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1) to increase LD accumulation in chondrocytes. Subsequent experiments with siRNAs and specific inhibitors further confirm the importance of the FGFR1/p38 axis for LD accumulation in chondrocytes exposed to FGF8. The results increase our understanding of the role of FGF8 in the lipid metabolic homeostasis of chondrocytes and provide insights into the physiology and pathology of cartilage.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144075341","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sen Li, Yuechao Yang, Zhisu Wang, Liangdong Li, Yang Gao, Yiqun Cao
{"title":"The lncRNA DANCR promotes breast cancer brain metastasis by acting as a ceRNA for miR-758-3p to regulate PTGS2 expression.","authors":"Sen Li, Yuechao Yang, Zhisu Wang, Liangdong Li, Yang Gao, Yiqun Cao","doi":"10.3724/abbs.2025082","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3724/abbs.2025082","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Brain metastases in breast cancer patients are correlated with markedly lower survival rates than extracranial metastases, highlighting the critical necessity for identifying novel therapeutic targets. The functional involvement of differentiation antagonizing nonprotein coding RNA (DANCR) in the pathogenesis of breast cancer brain metastases (BCBMs) has yet to be fully elucidated. Bioinformatics analyses identify DANCR as a potential specific prognostic biomarker of BCBM. CCK-8, transwell, and wound healing assays are performed to examine the effects of DANCR on the proliferation, migration, and invasion of tumors, along with <i>in vivo</i> assays. Mechanistic insights are obtained through quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), western blot analysis, and dual-luciferase reporter assays. DANCR is markedly upregulated in BCBM and specifically correlates with the prognostic risk of BCBM. DANCR overexpression significantly enhances breast cancer cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. According to low-throughput screening, only the expression of prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2) consistently varies in parallel with that of DANCR, and PTGS2 silencing reverses DANCR-induced protumor effects <i>in vitro</i>. Additionally, in brain metastatic lesions, PTGS2 expression is also elevated in patients with increased DANCR expression. Mechanistically, DANCR and PTGS2 possess a conserved miR-758-3p response element. DANCR directly binds to and sequesters miR-758-3p, thereby alleviating the suppressive effects of miR-758-3p on both DANCR and PTGS2. When the miR-758-3p binding site on DANCR is mutated, this interaction is completely abolished. DANCR drives BCBM by functioning as a miR-758-3p sponge to upregulate PTGS2. Targeting the DANCR/miR-758-3p/PTGS2 axis represents a promising therapeutic approach.</p>","PeriodicalId":6978,"journal":{"name":"Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144075019","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}