Publications by authors named "HuiFang Liang"

Background & Aims: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an aggressive malignancy with few effective treatment options. H3Q5ser, a serotonin-based histone modification mediated by transglutaminase 2 (TGM2), affects diverse biological processes, such as neurodevelopment. The role of TGM2-mediated H3Q5ser in HCC progression remains unclear.

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RETREG1/FAM134B is known for its role as a reticulophagy receptor. Our previous study established that RETREG1 is upregulated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and contributes to disease progression by activating the AKT signaling pathway. However, the specific mechanisms underlying the elevated expression of RETREG1 in HCC remain unclear.

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Background: CircRNAs have been demonstrated to play a crucial role in regulating the growth and progression of various cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Nevertheless, the circRNA's expression pattern and function in HCC need more investigation.

Methods: Bioinformatics techniques were used to identify differentially expressed circRNAs in HCC.

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Advanced metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) significantly contributes to high death rates among patients. The efficiency of targeted therapies and chemotherapeutic agents shows individual variability. Therefore, there is no effective treatment for advanced HCC.

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Article Synopsis
  • * In lenvatinib-resistant models, increased glycolysis leads to the accumulation of lactate and promotes the lactylation of IGF2BP3, which enhances the expression of key mRNAs like PCK2 and NRF2.
  • * Targeting IGF2BP3 with specific siRNAs or inhibiting glycolysis can restore sensitivity to lenvatinib, indicating that addressing metabolic and epigenetic pathways could provide new treatment strategies for HCC.
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Liver fibrosis is characterized by excessive extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition triggered by hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). As central players in fibrosis progression, HSCs are the most important therapeutic targets for antifibrotic therapy. However, owing to the limitations of systemic drug administration, there is still no suitable and effective clinical treatment.

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Article Synopsis
  • Liver fibrosis is a serious condition that can progress to liver cancer and failure, and early detection and treatment remain difficult.
  • The process involves liver inflammation and the activation of hepatic stellate cells, which are influenced by communication between various immune cells and the release of extracellular vesicles (EVs).
  • EVs play a key role in the inflammatory response and offer promising diagnostic and therapeutic options for liver fibrosis due to their stability, compatibility, and low toxicity.
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  • The study assessed the effectiveness of Tuina (TN) treatment alone and in combination with physiotherapy (PT) on patients with Chronic nonspecific low back pain (CNLBP) over a period from September 2020 to July 2023.
  • A total of 204 participants were randomly assigned to TN, PT, or a combination of both, with significant improvements in pain levels and disability reported in all treatment groups.
  • Although all groups showed improvement in primary and secondary outcomes like Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), there were no major differences between the treatments, indicating some level of equivalence in effectiveness.
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The metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) poses a significant threat to the survival of patients. G protein-coupled receptor 56 (GPR56) has garnered extensive attention within malignant tumor research and plays a crucial role in cellular surface signal transmission. Nonetheless, its precise function in HCC remains ambiguous.

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Previous research has revealed that platelets promote tumor metastasis by binding to circulating tumor cells (CTCs). However, the role of platelets in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of cancer cells at the primary tumor site, the crucial initial step of tumor metastasis, remains to be elucidated. Here, we found that platelet releasate enhanced EMT and motility of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells via AMPK/mTOR-induced autophagy.

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Despite the success of immunotherapy in treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), HCC remains a severe threat to health. Here, a crucial transcription factor, SOX12, is revealed that induces the immunosuppression of liver tumor microenvironment. Overexpressing SOX12 in HCC syngeneic models increases intratumoral regulatory T-cell (Treg) infiltration, decreases CD8T-cell infiltration, and hastens HCC metastasis.

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Background: N4-acetylcytidine (ac4C) represents a novel messenger RNA (mRNA) modification, and its associated acetyltransferase N-acetyltransferase 10 (NAT10) plays a crucial role in the initiation and progression of tumors by regulating mRNA functionality. However, its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development and prognosis is largely unknown. This study aimed to elucidate the role of NAT10-mediated ac4C in HCC progression and provide a promising therapeutic approach.

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Hepatitis B infection is substantially associated with the development of liver cancer globally, with the prevalence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cases exceeding 50%. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) encodes the Hepatitis B virus X (HBx) protein, a pleiotropic regulatory protein necessary for the transcription of the HBV covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) microchromosome. In previous studies, HBV-associated HCC was revealed to be affected by HBx in multiple signaling pathways, resulting in genetic mutations and epigenetic modifications in proto-oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes.

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cAMP responsive element binding protein 3 (CREB3), belonging to bZIP family, was reported to play multiple roles in various cancers, but its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is still unclear. cAMP responsive element binding protein 3 like 3 (CREB3L3), another member of bZIP family, was thought to be transcription factor (TF) to regulate hepatic metabolism. Nevertheless, except for being TFs, other function of bZIP family were poorly understood.

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Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly heterogeneous solid tumor, with its biological characteristics intricately linked to the activation of oncogenes. This research specifically explored CCDC137, a molecule within the CCDC family exhibiting the closest association with HCC. Our investigation aimed to unravel the role, underlying mechanisms, and potential therapeutic implications of CCDC137 in the context of HCC.

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ErbB3-binding protein 1(Ebp1) has two isoforms, p42 Ebp1 and p48 Ebp1, both of which can regulate cell growth and differentiation. But these isoforms often have opposite effects, including contradictory roles in regulation of cell growth in different tissues and cells. P48 Ebp1 belongs to the full-length sequence, while conformational changes in the crystal structure of p42 Ebp1 reveals a lack of an α helix at the amino terminus.

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Schistosoma infection is one of the major causes of liver fibrosis. Emerging roles of hepatic progenitor cells (HPCs) in the pathogenesis of liver fibrosis have been identified. Nevertheless, the precise mechanism underlying the role of HPCs in liver fibrosis in schistosomiasis remains unclear.

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Background: Psoriasis is a prevalent chronic inflammatory dermatosis characterized by the excessive proliferation of keratinocytes (KCs). Lysine 2-hydroxyisobutyrylation (Khib) is a newly identified post-translational modification that regulates various biological processes. Abnormal Khib modification has been associated with the development of autoimmune diseases.

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Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is characterized by rapid onset and high chance of metastasis. Therefore, identification of novel therapeutic targets is imperative. E26 transformation-specific homologous factor (EHF), a member of the E26 transformation-specific transcription factor family, plays a pivotal role in epithelial cell differentiation and cancer progression.

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Background: Liver progenitor cells (LPCs) are a subpopulation of cells that contribute to liver regeneration, fibrosis and liver cancer initiation under different circumstances.

Results: By performing adenoviral-mediated transfection, CCK-8 analyses, F-actin staining, transwell analyses, luciferase reporter analyses and Western blotting, we observed that TGF-β promoted cytostasis and partial epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in LPCs. In addition, we confirmed that TGF-β activated the Smad and MAPK pathways, including the Erk, JNK and p38 MAPK signaling pathways, and revealed that TGFβ-Smad signaling induced growth inhibition and partial EMT, whereas TGFβ-MAPK signaling had the opposite effects on LPCs.

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Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has a poor prognosis, and the efficacy of current therapeutic strategies is extremely limited in advanced diseases. Our previous study reported that protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor epsilon (PTPRE) is a promoting factor in HCC progression. In this study, our objective was to evaluate the treatment effect of PTPRE inhibitors in different HCC preclinical models.

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Proper preclinical models for the research of colorectal cancer (CRC) and CRC liver metastases (CLM) are a clear and unmet need. Patient-derived organoids have recently emerged as a robust preclinical model, but are not available to all scientific researchers. Here, we present paired 3D organoid cell lines of CWH22 (CRC-derived) and CLM22 (CLM-derived) with sound background information and the short tandem repeats are identical to those of the normal tissue.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigated the role of RNA helicase DDX17 in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) using mouse models to understand how it affects lipid metabolism and liver inflammation.
  • Researchers observed that DDX17 expression was significantly higher in liver tissues from patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and found that knocking down DDX17 reduced lipid accumulation while overexpressing it increased lipid build-up in liver cells.
  • The findings suggest that DDX17 contributes to the progression of NASH by promoting lipid accumulation and influencing liver cell function, indicating its potential as a therapeutic target in fatty liver diseases.
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ABCC1 belongs to the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) superfamily, which encompasses a total of 48 constituent members. ABCC1 has been shown to be associated with the growth, progression, and drug resistance of various types of cancer. However, the impact of ABCC1 on cancer immune infiltration and pan-cancer prognosis has been rarely studied.

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Article Synopsis
  • Metastasis is the leading cause of cancer deaths, particularly in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and is linked to high blood platelet counts and tumor expression of ADAM10, which indicate poor patient prognosis.
  • Research showed that platelets increase ADAM10 expression in tumor cells through the TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway, leading to the shedding of CX3CL1 and promoting cancer cell migration and invasion.
  • The study highlights the potential of targeting the TLR4/ADAM10/CX3CL1 axis as a strategy to inhibit platelet-driven metastasis in HCC, supported by findings from both in vitro and in vivo mouse models.
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