Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is associated with high mortality due to late diagnosis, recurrence, and limited therapeutic options. Thus, there is an urgent need for novel treatment approaches and new therapeutic targets. Cardiotoxicity resulting from anticancer therapies has become increasingly prominent, leading to a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases among cancer survivors. In our study, through a drug library screening, we identified that the cardiovascular therapeutic agent nebivolol exerts antitumor effects against HCC both in vivo and in vitro. Mechanistically, nebivolol suppressed HCC progression by downregulating RHOQ independently of β₁-adrenergic receptors. Furthermore, the combination of nebivolol and lenvatinib synergistically inhibited HCC proliferation both in vivo and in vitro. This study provides a rationale for repurposing nebivolol as a combination strategy for HCC therapy.

Recent evidence establishes the brain metastatic microenvironment as a key regulator of metastatic outgrowth, with oligodendrocytes being established as essential components of the brain metastatic microenvironment. Nonetheless, the mechanisms underlying oligodendrocyte-mediated brain metastasis in lung cancer await clarification. Using orthogonal experimental models spanning clinical specimens and animal models, we investigated the presence and functional roles of oligodendrocytes in lung cancer brain metastasis (LCBM). Combinatorial approaches including scRNA-seq, functional genomics, and mechanistic studies revealed ERBB3 as the critical paracrine factor mediating oligodendrocyte-tumor crosstalk. Through comprehensive analysis, we demonstrated the infiltration of oligodendrocytes in the metastatic niche of LCBM. Functional assays demonstrated that oligodendrocytes significantly enhanced the proliferation, migration, and invasion of brain metastatic cells of lung cancer. Mechanistically, oligodendrocyte-secreted ERBB3 acts as a copper chaperone that competitively mobilizes extracellular copper ions through high-affinity binding to SLC31A1 on tumor cells, thereby promoting intracellular copper accumulation. Additionally, elevated ERBB3 expression in LCBM clinical specimens correlated with significantly reduced overall survival and targeted ERBB3 suppressed lung cancer brain metastasis. Our findings establish oligodendrocyte-derived ERBB3 as a critical mediator of intercellular copper transfer via SLC31A1 binding, which coordinately drives brain metastasis progression. Therapeutic targeting of this copper signaling axis represents a promising strategy against LCBM.

Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), the most common and lethal subtype of renal cell carcinoma, exhibits marked intratumoral heterogeneity and complicates clinical management. Although long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate diverse cellular processes, their landscape and biomarker potential in ccRCC remain poorly defined. Here we performed single-nucleus and bulk transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic analyses on a cohort of 100 ccRCC patients. The expression pattern of lncRNAs were described based on metacells. Malignant cells displayed broader but lower lncRNA expression, likely reflecting copy number alterations, whereas low-abundance lncRNAs in normal epithelial cells showed individual variability. Multi-omics integration was used to establish a preliminary lncRNA functional inference pipeline, identifying lncRNAs involved in metabolic and immune processes and validating their roles through functional and in vivo experiments. Candidate biomarkers lncRNAs were identified to build diagnostic (DMRlnc) and prognostic models (PMRlnc), which were validated in TCGA, CheckMate, and IMmotion151 cohorts. DMRlnc achieved high diagnostic accuracy in both discovery and TCGA-KIRC cohorts (AUC 0.98 and 0.93). PMRlnc stratified patients into distinct risk groups with significant differences (p < 0.0001) across TCGA-KIRC and IMmotion151 cohorts. PMRlnc further indicated that low-risk patients may benefit more from nivolumab, while high-risk patients might respond better to atezolizumab plus bevacizumab.

Docetaxel (DTX) is a standard chemotherapy agent for castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC); however, DTX resistance remains a major clinical challenge, and the underlying molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. In our study, it was found that OTUB2 was highly expressed in DTX-resistant CRPC and could be served as a key driver of DTX resistance. Mechanistically, OTUB2 stabilizes the m5C reader ALYREF by removing its K48-linked polyubiquitin chains, leading to increased ALYREF protein levels. And then, ALYREF enhances the mRNA stability and expression of ABCG4, thereby promoting ATP-dependent efflux of DTX. Moreover, the expression of OTUB2 mRNA and protein could be regulated by FOXD3-AS1 derived from cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs). More importantly, treatment with OTUB2 inhibitor (OTUB2-IN-1) resensitized resistant CRPC to DTX. Together, our findings establish OTUB2 as a novel driver of DTX resistance in CRPC and highlight the role of CAFs-derived FOXD3-AS1 and OTUB2/ALYREF/ABCG4 axis in modulating DTX resistance of CRPC.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly aggressive malignancy with a poor prognosis, driven by metabolic reprogramming and immune evasion. The role of T-complex protein 1 subunit beta (CCT2) in HCC remains unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the function of CCT2 in HCC tumorigenesis.

Bioinformatics analysis and Clinical samples investigation were integrated with in vitro and in vivo experiments to investigate CCT2's role in HCC metabolism and immune modulation. The glycolytic activity was assessed by measuring extracellular acidification rate, glucose uptake, lactate levels, and metabolomic profiles. Coimmunoprecipitation or GST pulldown assays confirmed CCT2 interactions with aldolase A (ALDOA) and glutathione S-transferase P (GSTP1), while THP1 co-culture assays evaluated tumor immune crosstalk.

CCT2 directly interacts with and stabilizes the glycolytic enzyme ALDOA, as shown by co-immunoprecipitation and metabolic assays revealing increased extracellular acidification rate, glucose uptake, and lactate production in HCC cells. Genetic depletion of CCT2 suppresses tumor cell proliferation and migration in vitro and inhibits tumor growth in vivo. Furthermore, co-culture and exosome treatment experiments reveal that CCT2 promotes M2 macrophage polarization and establishes an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment through coordinated metabolic and exosome-mediated mechanisms. In mouse models, CCT2 knockdown significantly enhances the antitumor efficacy of PD-1 blockade.

CCT2 stabilizes ALDOA and facilitates exosome-mediated immunosuppressive signaling, thereby linking metabolic reprogramming to immune evasion in HCC and supporting its potential as a mechanistically informed therapeutic target.

The pro-tumor function of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in bladder cancer (BC) is not fully elucidated. This study integrates clinical cohorts, organoid models, and patient-derived xenografts (PDX) to dissect MSCs-derived TIMP1 as a key driver of BC progression. Using multiplex fluorescent immunohistochemistry and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, we found that elevated infiltration level of MSCs in BC tissues and TIMP1 levels in tissues/urine correlated with advanced tumor-stage, lymphovascular invasion, and reduced recurrence-free survival time, with MSCs infiltration positively associated with TIMP1 expression. Single-cell data analysis and mass spectrometry revealed TIMP1 as the predominant cytokine secreted by MSCs. Mechanistically, MSC-derived TIMP1 binds to ADAM10 to inhibit its extracellular shedding, thereby stabilizing cMet phosphorylation and activating the RAP1 signaling axis. Functional studies revealed that TIMP1 enhances intracellular Ca²⁺ levels and VDAC1 expression through the RAP1 pathway, promoting the formation of vesicles derived from the inner mitochondrial membrane (VDIMs) to regulate mitochondrial quality control. Crucially, the TIMP1 inhibitor FXR agonist 3 suppressed MSCs-driven BC proliferation in vitro and attenuated tumor growth in PDX models by disrupting the cMet-RAP1 signaling pathway without systemic toxicity. Our findings propose targeting the MSCs-TIMP1-RAP1 axis as a novel therapeutic strategy for BC.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), characterized by the absence of effective therapeutic targets, remains a major clinical challenge with poor prognosis. The identification of novel molecular targets is therefore crucial for developing effective treatment strategies. Eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase (eEF2K) is highly expressed in TNBC and known to promote tumor progression; however, the precise mechanisms underlying its oncogenic role remain elusive. In this study, we identified poly(rC)-binding protein 2 (PCBP2) as a previously unrecognized downstream substrate of eEF2K. Analysis of clinical TNBC specimens revealed a positive correlation between eEF2K and PCBP2 protein expression levels. Further studies demonstrated that site-specific phosphorylation of PCBP2 at serine 189 (Ser189) markedly promoted the malignant phenotype of TNBC cells. Mechanistically, eEF2K-mediated phosphorylation at Ser189 stabilized PCBP2 by preventing its ubiquitin-proteasome-dependent degradation. This phosphorylation-dependent stabilization, in turn, enabled PCBP2 to promote the mRNA stability of pro-oncogenic genes, including TNC, SOX5, and ITGB3, thereby driving TNBC progression. Collectively, these findings not only reveal PCBP2 as a critical downstream effector of eEF2K, but also highlight the eEF2K-PCBP2 signaling axis as a promising therapeutic target for TNBC.

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare clonal myeloid neoplasm. Cardiac involvement is exceedingly uncommon in neonates. We report a term male neonate with prenatally detected pericardial effusion and a postnatally identified epicardial mass adherent to the left ventricle. Multimodal imaging demonstrated confinement to the visceral pericardium without myocardial infiltration. Biopsy confirmed LCH (CD1a⁺, CD207⁺, S-100⁺, ALK^-, BRAFV600E^-) and staging excluded systemic disease. The patient remained hemodynamically stable and was managed conservatively after multidisciplinary evaluation. Serial imaging demonstrated complete spontaneous regression by 6 months. Comprehensive staging and precise anatomical imaging can guide safe observation in isolated epicardial LCH.

In recent years, increasing attention has been directed toward the mechanical microenvironment, which has become a major research focus in elucidating the mechanisms underlying tumor progression. On one hand, endogenous mechanical cues, such as matrix stiffness, fluid shear stress(FSS), and mechanical strain, have been shown to promote tumor cell malignant phenotypes, including proliferation, migration, 4 invasion, and drug resistance. These activities are primarily through mechano-transduction pathways involving integrin-FAK and YAP/TAZ. Meanwhile, mechanical microenvironment was also found to influence immune cell activity and tumor immune evasion. On the other hand, exogenous mechanical stimuli, such as magnetic fields and ultrasound, can be harnessed for therapeutic purposes by altering the tumor mechanical microenvironment in situ to enhance drug delivery or directly induce cell apoptosis. Furthermore, mechanical interventions exhibit synergistic effects when combined with conventional therapies like radiotherapy and chemotherapy, thereby amplifying antitumor efficacy. Inspired by these impressive outcomes, recent advances and mechanism of mechanical microenvironment dependent tumor growth interventions are reviewed in current work, along with outlooks of the translation challenges of this emerging strategy. As an effort to achieve precise and effective tumor control while overcoming current limitations, attempts such as multi-omics and artificial intelligence should be considered to empower personalized mechanical intervention.

Breast carcinoma (BRCA) involves multiple molecular markers, including epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), which induce cell migration. However, the specific impact of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) on EMT in BRCA remains uncertain. In this study, a prognostic model was constructed using EMT-associated lncRNAs (EALs), with utilization of integrative machine learning algorithms. The optimal model consisted of 15 EALs, with an AUC of 0.89 at 5 years, showing its potential as a plausible biomarker for BRCA. Among high-risk individuals, a significant increase in pathways linked to the preservation of equilibrium and immune defense was observed. Moreover, it was indicated that immunotherapy elicited negative responses in this group. Somatic mutations displayed higher TP53 rates in high-risk patients and increased CDH1/PIK3CA in low-risk ones. Notably, AC055854.1 and MIR205HG, important EALs in the model, probably regulate BRCA development through the lncRNA-microRNA-mRNA axis. Spatial transcriptome analysis revealed higher expression levels of EALs and high-risk related genes in ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), invasive mixed ductal/lobular carcinoma (IDC), and triple-negative BRCA (TNBC) than in breast metastasis (BMS) samples. And neutrophils were exclusively observed within the tumor microenvironment (TME) of BMS. All these findings emphasized EALs' value in revolutionizing clinical decision-making for personalized treatment strategies in BRCA cases.