Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40652043›Full record

ArticleCell death and differentiation2025

hMTR4 promotes p53 protein degradation and tumor growth by accelerating rRNA processing and regulating the RPL5-MDM2 axis.

Chen Xie, Xin-Ling Liang, Bin Chen, Sui Chen, Fang-Xin Xiong, Qi-Cheng Wang, Zhan-Li Chen, Feng-Jun He, Yihang Pan, Shi-Mei Zhuang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cell death and differentiation, 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

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

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

10 authors.

Chen Xie *MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China. xiech27@mail.sysu.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0002-9337-9763
Xin-Ling Liang *MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
Bin ChenMOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
Sui ChenMOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
Fang-Xin XiongMOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
Qi-Cheng WangMOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
Zhan-Li ChenMOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
Feng-Jun HeMOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
Yihang PanGuangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Digestive Cancer Research, Precision Medicine Center, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen, PR China.
Shi-Mei ZhuangMOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Functional Genes, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, PR China. lsszsm@mail.sysu.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0002-2512-3942

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 32000494National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 32370773National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 81930076
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

hMTR4 is an RNA helicase and an essential co-factor for the nuclear RNA exosome. Its role in the p53 pathway and cell cycle control remains unknown. Here, gain- and loss-of-function analyses in cell models showed that hMTR4 could not affect p53 mRNA levels, but decreased the levels of p53 protein and its downstream target genes by promoting p53 ubiquitination and degradation, thus accelerating cell cycle progression. These effects of hMTR4 were abrogated by nutlin-3A, an inhibitor of E3 ligase MDM2. Mechanistically, hMTR4 promoted rRNA processing in an RNA helicase-dependent manner, thus increased the amount of mature rRNA to bind ribosomal protein L5 (RPL5), resulted in sequestration of RPL5 in the nucleolus and reduced binding of RPL5 to MDM2 in the nucleoplasm, consequently promoted MDM2-mediated degradation of p53 protein. Silencing RPL5 blocked the effect of hMTR4 knockdown in upregulating p53, while hMTR4 overexpression abrogated the role of RPL5 in stimulating p53 activity. Interestingly, hMTR4 reduced the mRNA levels of p53-target genes via repressing p53 activity rather than promoting their RNA degradation. These findings disclose a novel hMTR4-rRNA-RPL5-MDM2-p53 axis and highlight hMTR4 and rRNA processing as important regulators of the p53 pathway. Further investigations on clinical samples showed that hMTR4 and RPL5 were frequently upregulated in different malignancies, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and they exhibited a positive correlation. High hMTR4 level was correlated with high recurrence of HCC, among patients with high RPL5 levels and wildtype p53 in tumors. Studies using mouse xenograft models revealed that silencing Skiv2l2 (the homologue of human hMTR4) in mouse hepatoma cells inhibited xenograft development, and tumor growth was suppressed by intratumoral injection of antisense oligonucleotides (ASO) targeting Skiv2l2. These data suggest the significance of hMTR4 overexpression in promoting tumor growth and its potential as a therapeutic target.

Indexed as

Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2Ribosomal ProteinsRNA, RibosomalTumor Suppressor Protein p53AnimalsCell Line, TumorCell ProliferationHumansMiceMice, Inbred BALB CMice, NudeProteolysisRNA Processing, Post-TranscriptionalUbiquitinationMDM2 protein, humanProto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2ribosomal protein L5, humanRibosomal ProteinsRNA, RibosomalTP53 protein, humanTumor Suppressor Protein p53

Identifiers

PMID40652043
PMCPMC12669599

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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.