Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41742192›Full record

ArticleJournal of translational medicine2026

RASGEF1B suppresses hepatocellular carcinoma through the ALDH7A1/Betaine/SNAI1 metabolic‒epigenetic axis.

Zeyi Guo, Kunjiang Tan, Zhongzhe Li, Yaguang Ren, Yizhe Dai, Meixian Jin, Yu Fu, Yukai Hu, Jinhao Guo, Min Zhang and 3 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of translational medicine, 2026. 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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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

13 authors.

Zeyi Guo *Department of Hepatic Surgery IV, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Naval Medical University (Second Military Medical University), Shanghai, 200438, P. R. China.
Kunjiang Tan *International Cooperation Laboratory on Signal Transduction, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Institute, Naval Medical University (Second Military Medical University), Shanghai, 200438, P. R. China.
Zhongzhe Li *Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery II, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510000, P. R. China.
Yaguang Ren *Research Center for Biomedical Optics and Molecular Imaging, Key Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging Science and System, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518000, P. R. China.
Yizhe DaiDepartment of Hepatic Surgery IV, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Naval Medical University (Second Military Medical University), Shanghai, 200438, P. R. China.
Meixian JinDepartment of Anesthesiology of the Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518172, P. R. China.
Yu FuDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery II, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510000, P. R. China.
Yukai HuInternational Cooperation Laboratory on Signal Transduction, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Institute, Naval Medical University (Second Military Medical University), Shanghai, 200438, P. R. China.
Jinhao GuoDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery II, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510000, P. R. China.
Min ZhangResearch Center for Biomedical Optics and Molecular Imaging, Key Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging Science and System, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518000, P. R. China.
Chengbo LiuResearch Center for Biomedical Optics and Molecular Imaging, Key Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging Science and System, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518000, P. R. China. cb.liu@siat.ac.cn.
Shunjun FuDepartment of Hepatobiliary Surgery II, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510000, P. R. China. fsj103@163.com.
Feng ShenDepartment of Hepatic Surgery IV, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Naval Medical University (Second Military Medical University), Shanghai, 200438, P. R. China. shenfengehbh@sina.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMetabolic‒epigenetic crosstalk critically orchestrates hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) pathogenesis. Deciphering the precise mechanism underlying epigenetic remodeling and metabolic reprogramming in HCC may lead to novel treatment paradigms, however, the key mechanisms remain elusive.

methodsRT-qPCR, western blotting and tissue microarrary Immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression of RasGEF domain family member 1B (RASGEF1B) in HCC and normal liver tissues. Transcriptome sequencing and high-resolution untargeted metabolomics were integrated to identify the downstream regulatory mechanism through which RASGEF1B inhibited the HCC progression. Epigenetic regulation was investigated using methylation-specific PCR and luciferase reporter assays. Bioinformatic prediction and molecular docking suggested a functional interplay among RASGEF1B, ALDH7A1, and BMI1, which was experimentally confirmed through coimmunoprecipitation, GST pull-down, and immunofluorescence assays. Protein stability and ubiquitination status of ALDH7A1 were examined using cycloheximide, immunoprecipitation assay, and an in vitro reconstituted ubiquitination system.

resultsIn this study, the antitumor role of RASGEF1B was confirmed in vitro and in vivo. Transcriptomic profiling revealed that RASGEF1B overexpression significantly reduced the snail family transcriptional repressor 1 (SNAI1), a master regulator of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Untargeted metabolomics revealed that RASGEF1B promoted SNAI1 DNA methylation through Betaine-mediated methionine metabolic reprogramming. Further analysis confirmed that RASGEF1B competitively protected the ALDH7A1 protein from BMI1-dependent ubiquitination, thereby elevating cellular Betaine levels in HCC.

conclusionsThis study revealed that RASGEF1B inhibited SNAI1 to suppress HCC through metabolite‒epigenetic crosstalk. Our findings potentially offer a new perspective on the classical RAS signaling framework, uncovering a metabolic‒epigenetic axis as an innovative therapeutic approach for improving clinical outcomes in patients with HCC.

Indexed as

Aldehyde DehydrogenaseCarcinoma, HepatocellularEpigenesis, GeneticLiver Neoplasmsras Guanine Nucleotide Exchange FactorsSnail Family Transcription FactorsAnimalsCell Line, TumorGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansMetabolic ReprogrammingMolecular Docking SimulationUbiquitinationAldehyde Dehydrogenaseras Guanine Nucleotide Exchange FactorsSNAI1 protein, humanSnail Family Transcription FactorsBMI1Choline metabolismDNA methylationMetabolic‒epigenetic crosstalkRAS guanine exchange factorUbiquitination

Identifiers

PMID41742192
PMCPMC13041341

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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.