Open Access Review

E3 ubiquitin ligase-dependent regulatory mechanism of TRIM family in carcinogenesis

by Gui Zhang a,1 Yunfang Zhang b,1 Luxuan Chen a Langxia Liu a,* orcid  and  Xuejuan Gao a,* orcid
a
MOE Key Laboratory of Tumor Molecular Biology and Key Laboratory of Functional Protein Research of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, Institute of Life and Health Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.
b
Department of Nephrology, Affiliated Huadu Hospital, Southern Medical University (People's Hospital of Huadu District), Guangzhou, China.
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
CI  2023, 21; 2(2), 21; https://doi.org/10.58567/ci02020005
Received: 31 May 2023 / Accepted: 27 June 2023 / Published Online: 28 June 2023

Abstract

Tripartite motif-containing (TRIM) proteins consist of over 80 proteins, the majority of which exhibit E3 ubiquitin ligase activity. E3 ligases have a critical role in various cellular processes by specifically recognizing and ubiquitinating substrate proteins to promote their proteasomal degradation or alter their activities. Numerous studies have indicated that TRIMs are involved in carcinogenesis through various mechanisms. However, the regulatory mechanisms delimitating TRIMs’ function as E3 ligases has not yet been specifically addressed in a previous review article. In this review, we focus on recent advancements in understanding how certain TRIMs function solely as E3 ligases during cancer cell proliferation, apoptosis, and metastasis. We comprehensively summarize the target proteins of TRIMs involved in disordered signaling pathways such as Wnt/β-catenin, PI3K/AKT, NF-κB, p53, ERK, and STAT3, as well as those regulating the cell cycle and glycolysis. Following ubiquitination modification by TRIM E3 ligases, these target proteins either undergo proteasome-mediating degradation, maintain steady levels, or get activated/inactivated. This review provides a foundation for the development of E3 ligase-based cancer treatments.


Copyright: © 2023 by Zhang, Zhang, Chen, Liu and Gao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.