Department of Liver Surgery, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200217, China.
Department of Liver Surgery, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200217, China; Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Oncology-Pathology, Karolinska Institutet, 171 76 Stockholm, Sweden.
Transl Res. 2024 Sep;271:79-92. doi: 10.1016/j.trsl.2024.05.007. Epub 2024 May 24.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most fatal types of malignancy, with a high prevalence of relapse and limited treatment options. As a critical regulator of ferroptosis and redox homeostasis, glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) is commonly upregulated in HCC and is hypothesized to facilitate cancer metastasis, but this has not been fully explored in HCC. Here, we report that up-regulated GPX4 expression in HCC is strongly associated with tumor metastasis. FACS-based in vivo and in vitro analysis revealed that a cell subpopulation featuring lower cellular reactive oxygen species levels and ferroptosis resistance were involved in GPX4-mediated HCC metastasis. Mechanistically, GPX4 overexpressed in HCC tumor cells was enriched in the nucleus and transcriptionally silenced GRHL3 expression, thereby activating PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling and promoting HCC metastasis. Functional studies demonstrated that GPX4 amino acids 110-145 are a binding site that interacts with the GRHL3 promoter. As AKT is a downstream target of GPX4, we combined the AKT inhibitor, AKT-IN3, with lenvatinib to effectively inhibit HCC tumor cell metastasis. Overall, these results indicate that the GPX4/GRHL3/PTEN/PI3K/AKT axis controls HCC cell metastasis and lenvatinib combined with AKT-IN3 represents a potential therapeutic strategy for patients with metastatic HCC.
肝细胞癌 (HCC) 是最致命的恶性肿瘤之一,具有较高的复发率和有限的治疗选择。谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶 4 (GPX4) 作为铁死亡和氧化还原平衡的关键调节剂,在 HCC 中通常上调,据推测有助于癌症转移,但这在 HCC 中尚未得到充分探索。在这里,我们报告称,HCC 中上调的 GPX4 表达与肿瘤转移强烈相关。基于 FACS 的体内和体外分析表明,涉及 GPX4 介导的 HCC 转移的细胞亚群具有较低的细胞活性氧水平和铁死亡抗性。在机制上,在 HCC 肿瘤细胞中过表达的 GPX4 富含于核内,并转录沉默 GRHL3 的表达,从而激活 PTEN/PI3K/AKT 信号通路并促进 HCC 转移。功能研究表明,GPX4 的氨基酸 110-145 是与 GRHL3 启动子相互作用的结合位点。由于 AKT 是 GPX4 的下游靶标,我们将 AKT 抑制剂 AKT-IN3 与仑伐替尼联合使用,有效地抑制了 HCC 肿瘤细胞的转移。总的来说,这些结果表明,GPX4/GRHL3/PTEN/PI3K/AKT 轴控制 HCC 细胞转移,仑伐替尼联合 AKT-IN3 代表了转移性 HCC 患者的一种潜在治疗策略。
Transl Oncol. 2025-1