KLF4 serves as a hub gate orchestrating cell crosstalk within the TME. Understanding its context-dependent functions may facilitate the development of KLF4-targeted therapies for precision oncology.

SLC7A11 knockdown regulates intracellular redox balance through the GSH-GPX4 axis, thereby promoting cellular cuproptosis. Targeting SLC7A11 can enhance the sensitivity of CRC cells to copper ionophores and may represent a novel therapeutic strategy to enhance cuproptosis of CRC cells.

In contrast, co-treatment with Cu and copper ionophore elesclomol (Cu-ES) triggered cuproptosis, a unique copper-dependent form of cell death, accompanied by mitochondrial dysfunction, dihydrolipoamide S-acetyltransferase aggregation, and ATP depletion. The PLK1 inhibitor BI-2536 recapitulated the effects of Cu-ES and exhibited synergistic activity when combined with Cu-ES, enhancing both cell death and EMT suppression. These findings highlight a novel regulatory mechanism of EMT through copper signaling and support copper-based combination therapies as a promising approach to simultaneously inhibit tumor growth and metastasis in colorectal cancer.

This inhibition collectively diminishes the expression and activity changes in complex IV, induces mitochondrial dysfunction, and promotes cuproptosis in ovarian cancer. This study further demonstrates that inhibiting the oxidative phosphorylation complex IV can enhance copper-induced cell death in ovarian cancer.

P2, N=20, Recruiting, Italian Sarcoma Group

TERF2 knockdown induced apoptosis, suppressed cell proliferation, and downregulated the E2F pathway, while simultaneously enhancing cuproptosis susceptibility, as evidenced by reduced half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of the elesclomol-copper (ES-Cu)...Downregulation of TERF2 inhibits the AML cell proliferation, induces apoptosis, and modulates cuproptosis sensitivity possibly via the E2F-mediated pathway. Targeting TERF2 not only inhibits proliferation but also unlocks cuproptosis as a therapeutic vulnerability, offering a potential strategy for AML.

P2 exhibited a ∼10-fold increase in antiproliferative potency against human leukemic cell lines compared to homoharringtonine (HHT)...Our findings provide valuable insights to guide the future structural optimization of harringtonine derivatives. Furthermore, P2 has been identified as a promising anti-leukemic candidate and warrants further development.

ATO combined with MET promotes apoptosis by up-regulating LKB1/AMPK and down-regulating PI3K/Akt signaling pathway to regulate the autophagy of leukemia cells.

Knockdown or pharmacological inhibition of METTL3 sensitized HCC cells to elesclomol-Cu-induced cuproptosis and effectively suppressed HCC xenograft growth in vivo. Clinically, elevated METTL3 expression was associated with poor HCC prognosis, and the protein expression of METTL3 and FDX1 was negatively correlated in HCC tissues. In conclusion, our findings identify an METTL3-mediated m6A regulatory mechanism controlling cuproptosis sensitivity, revealing METTL3 inhibition as a promising therapeutic strategy for HCC.

We demonstrate that the E3 ligase UBE2O catalyzes dual-site monoubiquitination of NLRP6: at K680-687 to drive oligomerization via a conformational change, and at K115/130 within the nuclear localization signal to enforce cytoplasmic sequestration through steric hindrance. Furthermore, the UBE2O inhibitor arsenic trioxide suppresses NLRP6-dependent interleukin (IL)-18 secretion in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) patients. Thus, UBE2O-mediated dual-site monoubiquitination emerges as a central mechanism licensing NLRP6 inflammasome activation, revealing a new target for modulating intestinal immunity.

P2, N=29, Active, not recruiting, Mayo Clinic | Trial primary completion date: May 2027 --> Sep 2026

P2, N=29, Active, not recruiting, Mayo Clinic | Recruiting --> Active, not recruiting | N=46 --> 29