Single-Cell Sequencing in Rheumatic Diseases: New Insights from the Perspective of the Cell Type

CTHRC1: An Emerging Hallmark of Pathogenic Fibroblasts in Lung Fibrosis

Pulmonary fibrosis is a chronic, progressive, irreversible lung disease characterized by fibrotic scarring in the lung parenchyma. This condition involves the excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) due to the aberrant activation of myofibroblasts in the alveolar environment. Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) signaling is a crucial driver of fibrogenesis because it promotes excessive ECM deposition, thereby leading to scar formation and lung damage. A primary target of TGF-β signaling in fibrosis is Collagen Triple Helix Repeat Containing 1 (CTHRC1), a secreted glycoprotein that plays a pivotal role in ECM deposition and wound repair. TGF-β transcriptionally regulates CTHRC1 in response to tissue injury and controls the wound healing response through functional activity. CTHRC1 may also play an essential role in re-establishing and maintaining tissue homeostasis after wound closure by modulating both the TGF-β and canonical Wnt signaling pathways. This dual function suggests that CTHRC1 regulates tissue remodeling and homeostasis. However, deregulated CTHRC1 expression in pathogenic fibroblasts has recently emerged as a hallmark of fibrosis in multiple organs and tissues. This review highlights recent studies suggesting that CTHRC1 can serve as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for fibrosis in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, systemic sclerosis, and post-COVID-19 lung fibrosis. Notably, CTHRC1 expression is responsive to antifibrotic drugs that target the TGF-β pathway, such as pirfenidone and bexotegrast, indicating its potential as a biomarker of treatment success. These findings suggest that CTHRC1 may present new opportunities for diagnosing and treating patients with lung fibrosis.

Exosomal Proteomics: Unveiling Novel Insights into Lung Cancer

Although significant progress has been made in early lung cancer screening over the past decade, it remains one of the most prevalent and deadliest forms of cancer worldwide. Exosomal proteomics has emerged as a transformative field in lung cancer research, with the potential to redefine diagnostics, prognostic assessments, and therapeutic strategies through the lens of precision medicine. This review discusses recent advances in exosome-related proteomic and glycoproteomic technologies, highlighting their potential to revolutionise lung cancer treatment by addressing issues of heterogeneity, integrating multiomics data, and utilising advanced analytical methods. While these technologies show promise, there are obstacles to overcome before they can be widely implemented, such as the need for standardization, gaps in clinical application, and the importance of dynamic monitoring. Future directions should aim to overcome the challenges to fully utilize the potential of exosomal proteomics in lung cancer. This promises a new era of personalized medicine that leverages the molecular complexity of exosomes for groundbreaking advancements in detection, prognosis, and treatment.

The biological significance of cuproptosis-key gene MTF1 in pan-cancer and its inhibitory effects on ROS-mediated cell death of liver hepatocellular carcinoma

Metal regulatory transcription factor 1 (MTF1) has been reported to be correlated with several human diseases, especially like cancers. Exploring the underlying mechanisms and biological functions of MTF1 could provide novel strategies for clinical diagnosis and therapy of cancers. In this study, we conducted the comprehensive analysis to evaluate the profiles of MTF1 in pan-cancer. For example, TIMER2.0, TNMplot and GEPIA2.0 were employed to analyze the expression values of MTF1 in pan-cancer. The methylation levels of MTF1 were evaluated via UALCAN and DiseaseMeth version 2.0 databases. The mutation profiles of MTF1 in pan-cancers were analyzed using cBioPortal. GEPIA2.0, Kaplan-Meier plotter and cBioPortal were also used to explore the roles of MTF1 in cancer prognosis. We found that high MTF1 expression was related to poor prognosis of liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) and brain lower grade glioma (LGG). Also, high expression level of MTF1 was associated with good prognosis of kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC), lung cancer, ovarian cancer and breast cancer. We investigated the genetic alteration and methylation levels of MTF1 between the primary tumor and normal tissues. The relationship between MTF1 expression and several immune cells was analyzed, including T cell CD8 + and dendritic cells (DC). Mechanically, MTF1-interacted molecules might participate in the regulation of metabolism-related pathways, such as peptidyl-serine phosphorylation, negative regulation of cellular amide metabolic process and peptidyl-threonine phosphorylation. Single cell sequencing indicated that MTF1 was associated with angiogenesis, DNA repair and cell invasion. In addition, in vitro experiment indicated knockdown of MTF1 resulted in the suppressed cell proliferation, increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) and promoted cell death in LIHC cells HepG2 and Huh7. Taken together, this pan-cancer analysis of MTF1 has implicated that MTF1 could play an essential role in the progression of various human cancers.