Multi-omics analysis uncovers clinical, immunological, and pharmacogenomic implications of cuproptosis in clear cell renal cell carcinoma

Dimethyl fumarate promotes the degradation of HNF1B and suppresses the progression of clear cell renal cell carcinoma

Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the most lethal subtype of renal cancer, and its treatment options remain limited. Therefore, there is an urgent need to discover therapeutic agents for ccRCC treatment. Here, we demonstrate that dimethyl fumarate (DMF), an approved medication for multiple sclerosis [1] and psoriasis, can inhibit the proliferation of ccRCC cells. Mechanistically, hepatocyte nuclear factor 1β (HNF1B), a transcription factor highly expressed in ccRCC, is succinated by DMF at cysteine residues, leading to its proteasomal degradation. Furthermore, HNF1B interacts with and stabilizes Yes-associated protein (YAP), thus DMF-mediated HNF1B degradation decreases YAP protein level and the expression of its target genes, resulting in the suppression of ccRCC cell proliferation. Importantly, oral administration of DMF sensitizes ccRCC to sunitinib treatment and enhances its efficacy in mice. In summary, we provide evidences supporting DMF as a potential drug for clinical treatment of ccRCC by targeting HNF1B and reveal a previously unrecognized role of HNF1B in regulating YAP in ccRCC.

The Status Quo of Pharmacogenomics of Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors in Precision Oncology: A Bibliometric Analysis of the Literature

Precision oncology and pharmacogenomics (PGx) intersect in their overarching goal to institute the right treatment for the right patient. However, the translation of these innovations into clinical practice is still lagging behind. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze the current state of research and to predict the future directions of applied PGx in the field of precision oncology as represented by the targeted therapy class of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). Advanced bibliometric and scientometric analyses of the literature were performed. The Scopus database was used for the search, and articles published between 2001 and 2023 were extracted. Information about productivity, citations, cluster analysis, keyword co-occurrence, trend topics, and thematic evolution were generated. A total of 448 research articles were included in this analysis. A burst of scholarly activity in the field was noted by the year 2005, peaking in 2017, followed by a remarkable decline to date. Research in the field was hallmarked by consistent and impactful international collaboration, with the US leading in terms of most prolific country, institutions, and total link strength. Thematic evolution in the field points in the direction of more specialized studies on applied pharmacokinetics of available and novel TKIs, particularly for the treatment of lung and breast cancers. Our results delineate a significant advancement in the field of PGx in precision oncology. Notwithstanding the practical challenges to these applications at the point of care, further research, standardization, infrastructure development, and informed policymaking are urgently needed to ensure widespread adoption of PGx.

The potential of targeting cuproptosis in the treatment of kidney renal clear cell carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is one of the top ten malignancies and tumor-related causes of death worldwide. The most common histologic subtype is kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC), accounting for approximately 75% of all RCC cases. Early resection is considered the basic treatment for patients with KIRC. However, approximately 30% of these patients experience recurrence post-operation. Cuproptosis, an autonomous mechanism for controlling cell death, encompasses various molecular mechanisms and multiple cellular metabolic pathways. These pathways mainly include copper metabolic signaling pathways, mitochondrial metabolism signaling pathways, and lipoic acid pathway signaling pathways. Recent evidence shows that cuproptosis is identified as a key cell death modality that plays a meaningful role in tumor progression. However, there is no published systematic review that summarizes the correlation between cuproptosis and KIRC, despite the fact that investigations on cuproptosis and the pathogenesis of KIRC have increased in past years. Researchers have discovered that exogenous copper infusion accelerates the dysfunction of mitochondrial dysfunction and suppresses KIRC cells by inducing cuproptosis. The levels of tricarboxylic acid cycle proteins, lipoic acid protein, copper, and ferredoxin 1 (FDX1) were dysregulated in KIRC cells, and the prognosis of patients with high FDX1 expression is better than that of patients with low expression. Cuproptosis played an indispensable role in the regulation of tumor microenvironment features, tumor progression, and long-term prognosis of KIRC. In this review, we summarized the systemic and cellular metabolic processes of copper and the copper-related signaling pathways, highlighting the potential targets related to cuproptosis for KIRC treatment.