Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for Infectious Diseases (Ministry of Education), Institute for Viral Hepatitis, Department of Infectious Diseases, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
Cell Death Dis. 2021 Apr 30;12(5):426. doi: 10.1038/s41419-021-03718-4.
Increasing evidence supports that ferroptosis plays an important role in tumor growth inhibition. Sorafenib, originally identified as an inhibitor of multiple oncogenic kinases, has been shown to induce ferroptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, some hepatoma cell lines are less sensitive to sorafenib-induced ferroptotic cell death. Glutathione S-transferase zeta 1 (GSTZ1), an enzyme in the catabolism of phenylalanine, suppresses the expression of the master regulator of cellular redox homeostasis nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2). This study aimed to investigate the role and underlying molecular mechanisms of GSTZ1 in sorafenib-induced ferroptosis in HCC. GSTZ1 was significantly downregulated in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells. Mechanistically, GSTZ1 depletion enhanced the activation of the NRF2 pathway and increased the glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) level, thereby suppressing sorafenib-induced ferroptosis. The combination of sorafenib and RSL3, a GPX4 inhibitor, significantly inhibited GSTZ1-deficient cell viability and promoted ferroptosis and increased ectopic iron and lipid peroxides. In vivo, the combination of sorafenib and RSL3 had a synergic therapeutic effect on HCC progression in Gstz1 mice. In conclusion, this finding demonstrates that GSTZ1 enhanced sorafenib-induced ferroptosis by inhibiting the NRF2/GPX4 axis in HCC cells. Combination therapy of sorafenib and GPX4 inhibitor RSL3 may be a promising strategy in HCC treatment.
越来越多的证据表明铁死亡在肿瘤生长抑制中发挥重要作用。索拉非尼最初被鉴定为多种致癌激酶的抑制剂,已被证明可诱导肝癌(HCC)中的铁死亡。然而,一些肝癌细胞系对索拉非尼诱导的铁死亡细胞死亡的敏感性较低。谷胱甘肽 S-转移酶 ζ1(GSTZ1)是苯丙氨酸分解代谢中的一种酶,可抑制细胞氧化还原稳态的主要调节因子核因子红细胞 2 相关因子 2(NRF2)的表达。本研究旨在探讨 GSTZ1 在索拉非尼诱导的 HCC 中铁死亡中的作用和潜在的分子机制。在索拉非尼耐药肝癌细胞中 GSTZ1 显著下调。在机制上,GSTZ1 耗竭增强了 NRF2 通路的激活并增加了谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶 4(GPX4)水平,从而抑制了索拉非尼诱导的铁死亡。索拉非尼和 GPX4 抑制剂 RSL3 的联合使用显著抑制 GSTZ1 缺陷细胞活力并促进铁死亡和增加异位铁和脂质过氧化物。在体内,索拉非尼和 RSL3 的联合使用对 Gstz1 小鼠 HCC 进展具有协同治疗作用。总之,这一发现表明 GSTZ1 通过抑制 HCC 细胞中的 NRF2/GPX4 轴增强了索拉非尼诱导的铁死亡。索拉非尼和 GPX4 抑制剂 RSL3 的联合治疗可能是 HCC 治疗的一种有前途的策略。
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