ArticleJournal of translational medicine2025
DSG3 promotes bladder cancer growth and metastasis via AKT/GSK3β/β-catenin pathway.
Article in Journal of translational medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 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
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Filamin C activates MAPK/ERK signaling to facilitate epithelial-mesenchymal transition in bladder cancer.Clinical & translational oncology : official publication of the Federation of Spanish Oncology Societies and of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico · 2026Article
- Identification of MYC co-expression gene: POLR3G is associated with cell senescence, immunotherapy, chemotherapy responses, and clinical prognosis in bladder cancer patients.Translational oncology · 2026Article
- Phosphorylated-EGFR and MMP7 upregulation in gastric cancer: Association with metastasis and poor prognosis.Oncology letters · 2026Article
- Immunometabolism: crosstalk with tumor metabolism and implications for cancer immunotherapy.Molecular cancer · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundThe high metastasis rate is the primary contributor to the high mortality rate associated with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC). Therefore, elucidating the mechanisms involved and identifying potential therapeutic targets are crucial for improving the overall prognosis of bladder cancer (BLCA).
methodsWe used consensus clustering and differential gene expression analyses to identify the key gene desmoglein 3 (DSG3). Subsequently, we examined the expression of DSG3 in BLCA and its association with the clinical characteristics and prognosis. Comprehensive in vitro and in vivo experiments were conducted to elucidate the functions of DSG3 and the reasons behind the upregulation of DSG3 in BLCA, as well as to investigate the mechanisms by which DSG3 promotes metastasis.
resultsDSG3 was markedly upregulated in BLCA, particularly in the basal/squamous (Ba/Sq) subtype. Importantly, elevated DSG3 levels demonstrated a strong association with aggressive tumor behavior and poorer clinical outcomes. Functional experiments revealed that DSG3 knockdown significantly impeded cancer stemness characteristics, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), migration, and invasion capabilities in vitro, whereas in vivo studies showed marked reductions in tumorigenesis and lung metastasis. Mechanistic investigations indicated that STAT3 transcriptionally activated DSG3 expression in BLCA cells. Downstream pathway analysis further showed that DSG3 promoted AKT phosphorylation, thereby inhibiting GSK3β activity. This molecular pathway promoted β-catenin nuclear translocation, thereby triggering transcriptional upregulation of SOX2 and MMP7 expression, ultimately mediating BLCA progression.
conclusionOur study demonstrates a novel mechanism by which DSG3 enhances cancer stemness, EMT, migration, and invasive capabilities through upregulation of SOX2 and MMP7 expression through the AKT/GSK3β/β-catenin pathway, ultimately leading to growth and metastasis of BLCA. This study elucidated the role of DSG3 in BLCA and its mechanism in activating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. We anticipate this study will identify potential biomarkers for predicting progression and for assessing prognosis. Furthermore, this study introduced a novel intervention target for BLCA treatment.
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.