Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40126852›Full record

ArticleJournal of physiology and biochemistry2025

ESR1-dependent suppression of LCN2 transcription reverses autophagy-linked ferroptosis and enhances sorafenib sensitivity in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Mingfang Xu, Tran Sy Trung, Zhiyong Zhu, Shijia Li, Shicheng Gong, Nuo Cheng, Peng Zhou, Shuai Wang

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Article in Journal of physiology and biochemistry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Mingfang Xu *Department of Otolaryngology Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, Jingzhou, 434020, China.
Tran Sy Trung *Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, No. 26 Chuyuan Avenue, Jingzhou District, Jingzhou, 434020, China.
Zhiyong ZhuDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, No. 26 Chuyuan Avenue, Jingzhou District, Jingzhou, 434020, China.
Shijia LiDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, No. 26 Chuyuan Avenue, Jingzhou District, Jingzhou, 434020, China.
Shicheng GongDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, No. 26 Chuyuan Avenue, Jingzhou District, Jingzhou, 434020, China.
Nuo ChengDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, No. 26 Chuyuan Avenue, Jingzhou District, Jingzhou, 434020, China.
Peng ZhouDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, No. 26 Chuyuan Avenue, Jingzhou District, Jingzhou, 434020, China.
Shuai WangDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University, No. 26 Chuyuan Avenue, Jingzhou District, Jingzhou, 434020, China. Wshuaites@163.com.

Funding

The Provincial Natural Science Fund (Face Items) of Hubei 2022CFB346
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Sorafenib resistance is a significant hurdle in the treatment landscape of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Lipocalin 2 (LCN2), a secretory glycoprotein that transports lipophilic molecules across cell membranes, is thought to affect the s therapeutic efficacy of sorafenib. Despite its importance, the detailed regulatory pathways involving LCN2 are still being deciphered. We probed the correlation between LCN2 expression and sorafenib resistance in HCC cells. Through the modulation of LCN2 levels, we investigated its role in cell proliferation, apoptosis, and its regulatory effects on autophagy-driven ferroptosis. With the aid of hTFtarget and JASPAR databases, ESR1 was pinpointed as a transcriptional inhibitor of LCN2. The impact of the ESR1-LCN2 axis on sorafenib resistance in HCC was then examined in vitro and validated in a xenograft tumor mouse model. In HCC cells, elevated LCN2 levels were found to be associated with resistance to sorafenib. Depletion of LCN2 resulted in attenuated HCC cell growth and elevated rates of apoptosis and ferroptosis. Overexpression of LCN2 had the opposite effect, promoting cell proliferation and suppressing cell death pathways, a response that could be overridden by autophagy agonists. ESR1 suppressed LCN2 transcription, which in turn activated autophagy-mediated ferroptosis, mitigating sorafenib tolerance in HCC and enhancing the therapeutic index. ESR1 targets LCN2 transcription to initiate autophagy-driven ferroptosis, thereby reducing sorafenib resistance in HCC cells.

Indexed as

Antineoplastic AgentsCarcinoma, HepatocellularDrug Resistance, NeoplasmEstrogen Receptor alphaFerroptosisLipocalin-2Liver NeoplasmsSorafenibAnimalsAutophagyCell Line, TumorCell ProliferationGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHep G2 CellsHumansMiceAntineoplastic AgentsESR1 protein, humanEstrogen Receptor alphaLCN2 protein, humanLipocalin-2SorafenibDrug resistanceESR1FerroptosisHepatocellular carcinomaLCN2Sorafenib

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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.