Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway

Abstract Papillary thyroid cancer (PTC), the predominant thyroid cancer, exhibits different adverse outcomes. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of PTC remain inadequately elucidated. An integrative analysis of multiple mRNA-seq datasets from Gene Expression Omnibus and The Cancer Genome A...

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Main Authors: Fengping Wu, Qian Liu, Jinkang Zhang, Dongkun Xu, Xue Jiang, Kun Zhang, YaZheng Chen, Xuliang Xia, Zhiqiang Jiang, Yuhong Shi, Wenling Tu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Publishing Group 2025-05-01
Series:Cell Death and Disease
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41419-025-07702-0
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author Fengping Wu
Qian Liu
Jinkang Zhang
Dongkun Xu
Xue Jiang
Kun Zhang
YaZheng Chen
Xuliang Xia
Zhiqiang Jiang
Yuhong Shi
Wenling Tu
author_facet Fengping Wu
Qian Liu
Jinkang Zhang
Dongkun Xu
Xue Jiang
Kun Zhang
YaZheng Chen
Xuliang Xia
Zhiqiang Jiang
Yuhong Shi
Wenling Tu
author_sort Fengping Wu
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Papillary thyroid cancer (PTC), the predominant thyroid cancer, exhibits different adverse outcomes. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of PTC remain inadequately elucidated. An integrative analysis of multiple mRNA-seq datasets from Gene Expression Omnibus and The Cancer Genome Atlas reveals a crucial gene, prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 (P4HA2), implicated in PTC progression. This study explored the expression pattern, functional role, and underlying molecular mechanism of P4HA2 in PTC. P4HA2 expression is significantly upregulated in PTC and correlates with aggressive clinicopathological features and a poor prognosis. P4HA2 knockdown effectively suppresses PTC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, and induces apoptosis. Conversely, P4HA2 overexpression exerts opposing effects on these cancer cell phenotypes. In vivo assessments confirmed the tumor-promoting effects of P4HA2, including subcutaneous tumor formation and multiple-organ (lung and liver) metastasis. Multi-omics analyses identified glycolytic pathway activation as a hallmark of P4HA2-driven tumorigenesis, which was further validated by measuring the extracellular acidification rate and α-ketoglutarate level. Subsequent investigation revealed that tripartite motif-containing protein 21 (TRIM21) interacts with P4HA2 through the RING domain, promoting K48-linked and K63-linked ubiquitination followed by proteasome-dependent degradation of P4HA2. The knockdown of TRIM21 significantly enhances the proliferation, migration, and invasion of PTC cells, while also inducing apoptosis. Moreover, P4H inhibitors also displayed notable anti-tumor effects in PTC cells. These findings collectively elucidate a novel mechanism through which P4HA2 potentially contributes to PTC progression, providing a promising therapeutic target.
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spelling doaj-art-4ede4e61c61648c380b88fb6616482eb2025-08-20T03:07:54ZengNature Publishing GroupCell Death and Disease2041-48892025-05-0116111510.1038/s41419-025-07702-0Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathwayFengping Wu0Qian Liu1Jinkang Zhang2Dongkun Xu3Xue Jiang4Kun Zhang5YaZheng Chen6Xuliang Xia7Zhiqiang Jiang8Yuhong Shi9Wenling Tu10Department of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Genetics, School of Bioscience and Technology, Chengdu Medical CollegeWest China Second University Hospital, Sichuan UniversityDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, the second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, China National Nuclear Corporation 416 HospitalAbstract Papillary thyroid cancer (PTC), the predominant thyroid cancer, exhibits different adverse outcomes. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of PTC remain inadequately elucidated. An integrative analysis of multiple mRNA-seq datasets from Gene Expression Omnibus and The Cancer Genome Atlas reveals a crucial gene, prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 (P4HA2), implicated in PTC progression. This study explored the expression pattern, functional role, and underlying molecular mechanism of P4HA2 in PTC. P4HA2 expression is significantly upregulated in PTC and correlates with aggressive clinicopathological features and a poor prognosis. P4HA2 knockdown effectively suppresses PTC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, and induces apoptosis. Conversely, P4HA2 overexpression exerts opposing effects on these cancer cell phenotypes. In vivo assessments confirmed the tumor-promoting effects of P4HA2, including subcutaneous tumor formation and multiple-organ (lung and liver) metastasis. Multi-omics analyses identified glycolytic pathway activation as a hallmark of P4HA2-driven tumorigenesis, which was further validated by measuring the extracellular acidification rate and α-ketoglutarate level. Subsequent investigation revealed that tripartite motif-containing protein 21 (TRIM21) interacts with P4HA2 through the RING domain, promoting K48-linked and K63-linked ubiquitination followed by proteasome-dependent degradation of P4HA2. The knockdown of TRIM21 significantly enhances the proliferation, migration, and invasion of PTC cells, while also inducing apoptosis. Moreover, P4H inhibitors also displayed notable anti-tumor effects in PTC cells. These findings collectively elucidate a novel mechanism through which P4HA2 potentially contributes to PTC progression, providing a promising therapeutic target.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41419-025-07702-0
spellingShingle Fengping Wu
Qian Liu
Jinkang Zhang
Dongkun Xu
Xue Jiang
Kun Zhang
YaZheng Chen
Xuliang Xia
Zhiqiang Jiang
Yuhong Shi
Wenling Tu
Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway
Cell Death and Disease
title Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway
title_full Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway
title_fullStr Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway
title_full_unstemmed Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway
title_short Prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit alpha-2 acts as a TRIM21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway
title_sort prolyl 4 hydroxylase subunit alpha 2 acts as a trim21 ubiquitination substrate to promote papillary thyroid cancer progression via the glycolytic pathway
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41419-025-07702-0
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