ArticleNature communications2016
The deubiquitinase USP21 maintains the stemness of mouse embryonic stem cells via stabilization of Nanog.
Article in Nature communications, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 59 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
59 citing papers in PubMed, 92 citations in OpenAlex.
- USP21 functions as an oncogenic regulator of the Mdm2-p53 axis in colorectal cancer.Cell death discovery · 2026Article
- Kap1 Regulates Protein Stability of Nanog by Interfering with Fbxw8-Dependent Ubiquitination.International journal of stem cells · 2025Article
- Mechanism of USP21 autoinhibition and histone H2AK119 deubiquitination.Science advances · 2025Article
- Sperm derived H2AK119ub1 is required for embryonic development in Xenopus laevis.Nature communications · 2025Article
- USP21-EGFR signaling axis is functionally implicated in metastatic colorectal cancer.Cell death discovery · 2024Article
- Article
- KLF15 suppresses stemness of pancreatic cancer by decreasing USP21-mediated Nanog stability.Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS · 2024Article
- The ubiquitin-specific protease 21 is critical for cancer cell mitochondrial function and regulates proliferation and migration.The Journal of biological chemistry · 2024Article
- ERK3 Increases Snail Protein Stability by Inhibiting FBXO11-Mediated Snail Ubiquitination.Cancers · 2023Article
- STAT3 phosphorylation at serine 727 activates specific genetic programs and promotes clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) aggressiveness.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- The RNA-binding protein Adad1 is necessary for germ cell maintenance and meiosis in zebrafish.PLoS genetics · 2023Article
- USP7 represses lineage differentiation genes in mouse embryonic stem cells by both catalytic and noncatalytic activities.Science advances · 2023Article
- TRRAP Enhances Cancer Stem Cell Characteristics by Regulating NANOG Protein Stability in Colon Cancer Cells.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Article
- ATG7-mediated autophagy facilitates embryonic stem cell exit from naive pluripotency and marks commitment to differentiation.Autophagy · 2022Article
- A deubiquitination module essential for TScience advances · 2022Article
- A NANOG-pERK reciprocal regulatory circuit regulates Nanog autoregulation and ERK signaling dynamics.EMBO reports · 2022Article
- USP21 promotes self-renewal and tumorigenicity of mesenchymal glioblastoma stem cells by deubiquitinating and stabilizing FOXD1.Cell death & disease · 2022Article
- Review
- Gallic acid induces T-helper-1-like TJournal for immunotherapy of cancer · 2022Article
- Glycoprotein PTGDS promotes tumorigenesis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma by MYH9-mediated regulation of Wnt-β-catenin-STAT3 signaling.Cell death and differentiation · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Nanog is a master pluripotency factor of embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Stable expression of Nanog is essential to maintain the stemness of ESCs. However, Nanog is a short-lived protein and quickly degraded by the ubiquitin-dependent proteasome system. Here we report that the deubiquitinase USP21 interacts with, deubiquitinates and stabilizes Nanog, and therefore maintains the protein level of Nanog in mouse ESCs (mESCs). Loss of USP21 results in Nanog degradation, mESCs differentiation and reduces somatic cell reprogramming efficiency. USP21 is a transcriptional target of the LIF/STAT3 pathway and is downregulated upon differentiation. Moreover, differentiation cues promote ERK-mediated phosphorylation and dissociation of USP21 from Nanog, thus leading to Nanog degradation. In addition, USP21 is recruited to gene promoters by Nanog to deubiquitinate histone H2A at K119 and thus facilitates Nanog-mediated gene expression. Together, our findings provide a regulatory mechanism by which extrinsic signals regulate mESC fate via deubiquitinating Nanog.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.