Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40313760›Full record

ArticleResearch square2025

Orphan Nuclear Receptor 4A1 (NR4A1) and NR4A2are Endogenous Regulators of CD71 and TheirLigands Induce Ferroptosis in Breast Cancer.

Stephen Safe, Arafat Rahman Oany, Srijana Upadhyay, Wai Ning Tsui, Amanuel Hailemariam, Sarah Latka, John Landua, Sandra Scherer, Alana L Welm, Hugo Villanueva and 1 more

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Article in Research square, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Stephen SafeTexas A&M University.ORCID 0000-0002-2115-3060
Arafat Rahman OanyTexas A&M University.ORCID 0000-0003-2228-457X
Srijana UpadhyayTexas A&M University.
Wai Ning TsuiTexas A&M University.
Amanuel HailemariamTexas A&M University.
Sarah LatkaBaylor College of Medicine.
John LanduaBaylor College of Medicine.
Sandra SchererUniversity of Utah, Huntsman Cancer Institute and Department of Oncological Sciences.ORCID 0000-0002-7943-8595
Alana L WelmDepartment of Oncological Sciences, Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA.
Hugo VillanuevaBaylor College of Medicine.
Michael LewisBaylor College of Medicine.

Funding

Tumor BiologyP30CA125123 · NCI · BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE · PI Suzanne AW Fuqua · 2007 to 2026
$73.9M
Tolinapant efficacy in a subset of triple negative breast cancersU54CA224076 · NCI · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · PI Alana L. Welm · 2017 to 2026
$13.5M
Texas A&M Center for Environmental Health Research (TiCER)P30ES029067 · NIEHS · TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY · PI Sakhila Banu · 2019 to 2026
$13.0M
NCI NIH HHS P30 CA125123NCI NIH HHS U54 CA224076NIEHS NIH HHS P30 ES029067
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent cell death pathway that involves multiple genes including the transferrin receptor (TFRC/CD71), glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) and SLC7A11. This study is based on the hypothesis that orphan nuclear receptor 4A1 (NR4A1) and NR4A2 maintain low levels of ferroptosis in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells and that bis-indole derived (CDIM) compounds act as NR4A1/2 ligands that induce ferroptosis by enhancing CD71 expression. 1,1-Bis(3'-indolyl)-1-(3,5-disubstitutedphenyl)methane (DIM-3,5) analogs were investigated for their cytotoxicity and effects on NR4A1 and NR4A2 regulated genes and induction of ferroptosis by cytotoxicity, western blot and RT-PCR. Several assays also determined enhanced lipoperoxidation, reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde formation in TNBC cells. Knockdown of NR4A1, NR4A2, Sp1 and Sp4 was carried out by RNA interference. Molecular mechanisms of NR4A1/2-mediated regulation of CD71 expression were determined using CD71-luciferase promoter constructs, overexpression of Sp1 and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays. Initial studies show that DIM-3,5 act as an inverse NR4A1/NR4A2 agonist that downregulated the pro-oncogenic responses/gene products regulated by both receptors in TNBC cells. DIM-3,5 analogs also induced ROS, malondialdehyde and lipoperoxide formation in TNBC cells and this was accompanied by indicators of ferroptosis that include decreased expression of GPX4 and SLC7A11 and induction of CD71. Induction of CD71, an important biomarker of ferroptosis was observed after treatment of TNBC cells with DIM-3,5 analogs, knockdown of NR4A1, NR4A2, Sp1 or Sp4 demonstrating that induction of CD71 was coregulated by both receptors. Moreover, both promoter and ChIP analysis indicated that NR4A1 and NR4A2 acted as ligand-dependent cofactors of Sp1/4-mediated expression of CD71 in TNBC cells. CD71, a key biomarker of ferroptosis is an NR4A1/2/Sp regulated gene that can be directly targeted by DIM-3,5 inverse NR4A1/2 agonists to induce ferroptosis in TNBC cells.

Indexed as

Breast cancerFerroptosisNR4A1NR4A2Sp

Identifiers

PMID40313760
PMCPMC12045456

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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.