CPEB1 Controls NRF2 Proteostasis and Ferroptosis Susceptibility in Pancreatic Cancer.

Pancreatic cancer is the deadliest malignancy with a poor response to chemotherapy but is potentially indicated for ferroptosis therapy. Here we identified that cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding protein 1 (CPEB1) regulates NRF2 proteostasis and susceptibility to ferroptosis in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). We found that CPEB1 deficiency in cancer cells promotes the translation of p62/SQSTM1 by facilitating mRNA polyadenylation. Consequently, upregulated p62 enhances NRF2 stability by sequestering KEAP1, an E3 ligase for proteasomal degradation of NRF2, leading to the transcriptional activation of anti-ferroptosis genes. In support of the critical role of this signaling cascade in cancer therapy, CPEB1-deficient pancreatic cancer cells display higher resistance to ferroptosis-inducing agents than their CPEB1-normal counterparts in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, based on the pathological evaluation of tissue specimens from 90 PDAC patients, we established that CPEB1 is an independent prognosticator whose expression level is closely associated with clinical therapeutic outcomes in PDAC. These findings identify the role of CPEB1 as a key ferroptosis regulator and a potential prognosticator in pancreatic cancer.

A-site defective La2-xCuO4 perovskite-type oxides for efficient oxidation of cyclohexylbenzene.

Phenol production through the oxidation of cyclohexylbenzene (CHB) and the subsequent decomposition of tertiary hydroperoxide has attracted more and more attention. In this study, defective La2-xCuO4 perovskite-type oxide catalysts with tunable A-site deficient structures and abundant surface oxygen vacancies were developed for the liquid phase oxidation of CHB to produce cyclohexylbenzene-1-hydroperoxide (CHBHP). By tuning the amount of A-site La ions in the perovskite structure, more surface oxygen vacancies and Cu+ species were formed in catalysts. The A-site-deficient La1.9CuO4 catalyst achieved significant catalytic efficiency along with a high CHBHP yield of 27.6% at 48.6% CHB conversion under reaction conditions (i.e., 120 °C and 12 h), outperforming those of other transition metal-based catalysts previously reported in the literature. A series of structural characterization methods and catalytic reactions highlighted the crucial roles of surface oxygen vacancies and metal La and Cu ions in the oxidation process. It was revealed that metal ions favored CHB adsorption and activation, while surface oxygen vacancies facilitated the creation of active adsorbed oxygen species. The present study offers an opportunity for the future design of new high-efficiency heterogeneous catalyst systems for CHB oxidation to obtain phenol.

Serum metabolomic and lipidomic profiling identifies diagnostic biomarkers for seropositive and seronegative rheumatoid arthritis patients.

BACKGROUND: Diagnosing seronegative rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can be challenging due to complex diagnostic criteria. We sought to discover diagnostic biomarkers for seronegative RA cases by studying metabolomic and lipidomic changes in RA patient serum. METHODS: We performed comprehensive metabolomic and lipidomic profiling in serum of 225 RA patients and 100 normal controls. These samples were divided into a discovery set (n = 243) and a validation set (n = 82). A machine-learning-based multivariate classification model was constructed using distinctive metabolites and lipids signals. RESULTS: Twenty-six metabolites and lipids were identified from the discovery cohort to construct a RA diagnosis model. The model was subsequently tested on a validation set and achieved accuracy of 90.2%, with sensitivity of 89.7% and specificity of 90.6%. Both seropositive and seronegative patients were identified using this model. A co-occurrence network using serum omics profiles was built and parsed into six modules, showing significant association between the inflammation and immune activity markers and aberrant metabolism of energy metabolism, lipids metabolism and amino acid metabolism. Acyl carnitines (20:3), aspartyl-phenylalanine, pipecolic acid, phosphatidylethanolamine PE (18:1) and lysophosphatidylethanolamine LPE (20:3) were positively correlated with the RA disease activity, while histidine and phosphatidic acid PA (28:0) were negatively correlated with the RA disease activity. CONCLUSIONS: A panel of 26 serum markers were selected from omics profiles to build a machine-learning-based prediction model that could aid in diagnosing seronegative RA patients. Potential markers were also identified in stratifying RA cases based on disease activity.

Oxysterol-binding protein-related protein 4L promotes cell proliferation by sustaining intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis in cervical carcinoma cell lines.

Oxsterol binding protein-related protein 4 (ORP4) is essential for cell proliferation, but the underlying mechanism is unclear. ORP4 is expressed as three variants, ORP4L, ORP4M and ORP4S. Here, we reported that silencing of ORP4L with specific small interfering RNA (siRNA) inhibited the proliferation of human cervical cancer cell lines C33A, HeLa and CaSki, the reverse effect being observed in ORP4L overexpressing cells. For molecular insight, we found that ORP4L maintained intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis. Through this mechanism, ORP4L activated nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) activity and thus promoted expression of a gene cluster which supported cell proliferation. Of note, ORP4L sustained inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor 1 (IP3R1) expression at both mRNA and protein levels via Ca2+-dependent NFAT3 activation, which offered a mechanic explanation for the role of ORP4L intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis. Furthermore, ORP4L knockdown markedly inhibited tumor growth in a C33A cell xenograft mouse model. To conclude, our results reveal that ORP4L promotes cell proliferation through maintaining intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis.