Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41410530›Full record

ArticleJCI insight2026

Epithelial HO-1 regulates iron availability and promotes colonic tumorigenesis in a context-dependent manner.

Rosemary C Callahan, Jillian C Curry, Geetha Bhagavatula, Alyse W Staley, Rachel Em Schaefer, Faiz Minhajuddin, Liheng Zhou, Rane M Neuhart, Shaikh M Atif, David J Orlicky and 7 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JCI insight, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing 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

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors.

Rosemary C CallahanDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Jillian C CurryDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Geetha BhagavatulaDivision of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Colorado; Mucosal Inflammation Program, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Alyse W StaleyUniversity of Colorado Cancer Center Biostatistics Core, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Rachel Em SchaeferDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Faiz MinhajuddinDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Liheng ZhouDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Rane M NeuhartDivision of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Colorado; Mucosal Inflammation Program, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Shaikh M AtifDivision of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Department of Medicine, and.
David J OrlickyDepartment of Pathology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Ian M CartwrightDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Mark E GerichDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Calen A SteinerDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Arianne L TheissDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Caroline Ht HallDivision of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Colorado; Mucosal Inflammation Program, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Sean P ColganDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Joseph C OnyiahDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.

Funding

University of Colorado Cancer Center Support Grant - Lung Cancer Patient-Derived Xenografts with Autologous Human Immune SystemsP30CA046934 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI James V Degregori · 1988 to 2026
$117.0M
ROLE OF EPITHELIA IN ISCHEMIA/REPERFUSION INJURYR01DK050189 · NIDDK · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI COLGAN, SEAN P · 2000 to 2024
$5.0M
Mechanisms of Adenosine ProtectionR01DK095491 · NIDDK · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI Sean P Colgan · 2012 to 2026
$4.9M
Metabolic Regulation of Inflammation by Microbial SCFAR01DK104713 · NIDDK · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI Sean P Colgan · 2015 to 2026
$4.7M
Hypoxia, HIF, and Mucosal InflammationR37DK050189 · NIDDK · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI COLGAN, SEAN P · 2010 to 2019
$4.1M
MARC at the University of Colorado DenverT34GM149812 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI RICHARD M ALLEN, Sonia Castro Flores · 2023 to 2026
$1.1M
The role of Axl signaling in intestinal fibrosisK08DK138279 · NIDDK · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI Calen Andrew Steiner · 2025 to 2026
$328k
EPITHELIA AND ISCHEMIA/REPERFUSION INJURYR29DK050189 · NIDDK · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI COLGAN, SEAN P · 1995 to 1999
–
BLRD VA I01 BX002182BLRD VA I01 BX005288BLRD VA IK2 BX003865BLRD VA IK2 BX005710BLRD VA IK6 BX006475NCI NIH HHS P30 CA046934NIDDK NIH HHS K08 DK138279NIDDK NIH HHS R01 DK050189NIDDK NIH HHS R01 DK095491NIDDK NIH HHS R01 DK104713NIDDK NIH HHS R29 DK050189NIDDK NIH HHS R37 DK050189NIGMS NIH HHS T34 GM149812
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Induction of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1/Hmox1) is broadly considered cytoprotective, but the role of colonic epithelial HO-1 in colitis-associated tumorigenesis is poorly defined. HO-1 catabolizes heme, releasing ferrous iron, a key driver of oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation. We observed that colonic epithelial HO-1 was induced during colitis and tumorigenesis. We also found that HO-1 was upregulated in ferroptosis-inducing conditions in murine and human colonic epithelial organoids and correlated with lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis markers in colonic tumors. In colonic epithelial organoids exposed to heme, deletion of Hmox1 amplified a compensatory oxidative stress and detoxification transcriptional program, likely reflecting unresolved oxidative and nonoxidative toxicity from heme. In vivo, epithelial HO-1-deficient mice developed significantly fewer and smaller tumors compared with littermate controls in a colitis-associated tumorigenesis model, despite similar inflammatory injury. Tumors from KO mice exhibited reduced iron levels, decreased lipid peroxidation, lower oxidative DNA damage, and decreased proliferation. Single-cell RNA sequencing of tumor epithelial cells revealed a shift from a proliferative to a stress-adaptive program with loss of HO-1. These findings identify epithelial HO-1 as a context-dependent regulator of tumorigenesis: it is protective against acute heme toxicity but promotes iron-dependent oxidative damage and proliferation in the setting of chronic inflammation.

Indexed as

CarcinogenesisColitisColonic NeoplasmsHeme Oxygenase-1IronAnimalsColonDisease Models, AnimalEpithelial CellsFerroptosisHemeHumansIntestinal MucosaLipid PeroxidationMaleMembrane ProteinsHemeHeme Oxygenase-1HMOX1 protein, humanHmox1 protein, mouseIronMembrane ProteinsCell biologyCell stressColorectal cancerGastroenterologyInflammatory bowel disease

Identifiers

PMID41410530
PMCPMC12892898

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.