Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42152515›Full record

ArticleAutophagy2026

Organelle contact reorganization drives calcium-dependent autophagy under proteostatic stress.

Yubin Ko, Minjeong Ko, Marius Ueffing, Hye Jin Kang, Ho Jeong Kwon

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Autophagy, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

5 authors.

Yubin KoChemical Genomics Leader Research Laboratory, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.ORCID 0009-0004-6995-7158
Minjeong KoChemical Genomics Leader Research Laboratory, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.ORCID 0000-0003-1952-1036
Marius UeffingCentre for Ophthalmology, Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
Hye Jin KangDepartment of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Ho Jeong KwonChemical Genomics Leader Research Laboratory, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.ORCID 0000-0002-6919-833X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Disruption of proteostasis is a defining feature of cancer and other chronic diseases. The AAA+ ATPase VCP/p97 (valosin containing protein) is a key regulator of proteostasis by disassembling ubiquitinated substrates for degradation. VCP overexpression supports cancer cell survival and correlates with poor prognosis, promoting the development of VCP inhibitors as anti-cancer agents. However, the molecular basis for cancer-selective vulnerability of VCP inhibition remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that allosteric VCP inhibition triggers cell-type specific macroautophagy/autophagy through dynamic reorganization of organelle contact sites. In human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), VCP inhibition induces adaptive autophagy through coordinated reorganization of plasma membrane (PM)-ER-mitochondria contacts. Controlled opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) releases calcium into the cytosol, activating AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and TFEB pathways, collectively enhancing autophagic flux and sustaining endothelial survival. Critically, calcium-activated kinase inhibitor or calcium chelators blocked VCP inhibitor-induced autophagy in HUVECs, confirming calcium signaling as the central mediator of adaptive autophagy. In contrast, HCT116 colon cancer cells fail to maintain calcium homeostasis under VCP inhibition, leading to mitochondrial calcium overload, defective autophagy, and cell death. Together, our findings identify organelle contact reorganization and calcium homeostasis as key determinants of cell fate under conditions of proteotoxic stress, revealing how VCP inhibition selectively suppresses tumor progression while preserving vascular integrity that could enhance drug delivery and reduce tumor hypoxia.

Indexed as

AutophagyCalciumOrganellesProteostasisEndoplasmic ReticulumHCT116 CellsHumansHuman Umbilical Vein Endothelial CellsMitochondriaProteotoxic StressValosin Containing ProteinCalciumValosin Containing ProteinAutophagycalcium signalingcancer selectivityorganelle contact reorganizationproteostatic stressVCP/p97 inhibition

Identifiers

PMID42152515
PMCPMC13618822

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.