Shunli Qi

Liver ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is a primary complication in major liver surgery. Our previous study about proteome profiling has revealed that the PPAR signaling cascade was significantly upregulated during liver ischemia/reperfusion. To elucidate the potential mechanisms of PPARα involved in I/R injury, we used oleoylethanolamide (OEA), the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) agonist, in this study. We demonstrated a protective role of OEA on liver I/R injury by using a mouse model of partial warm ischemia-reperfusion and hypoxia-reoxygenation model of hepatocytes. These effects were caused by ameliorating liver damage, decreasing the level of serum ALT and AST, and reducing the apoptosis of hepatocytes. Furthermore, a mechanistic study revealed that OEA regulated endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress by activating PPARα, thereby reducing ER stress-associated apoptosis to attenuate liver I/R injury. Briefly, these data first proposed that OEA-mediated PPARα activation could be an effective therapy against hepatic ischemia/reperfusion injury.

RNF2 (also known as ding, Ring1B or Ring2) is a member of the Ring finger protein family, which functions as E3 ubiquitin ligase for monoubiquitination of histone H2A at lysine 119 (H2AK119ub). RNF2 gene is located at the 1q25.3 site of human chromosome and the coding region is composed of 9 exons, encoding 336 amino acids in total. Many studies have demonstrated that overexpressed RNF2 was involved in the pathological progression of multiple cancers and has an impact on their clinical features. For instance, the upregulated expression level of RNF2 is positively correlated with the occurrence and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma, melanoma, prostate cancer, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, gastric cancer, and bladder urothelial carcinoma, as well as with the radioresistance of lung cancer and chemoresistance of ovarian cancer. This review provides an up‐to‐date perspective on the relationship between RNF2 and several cancers and highlights recent studies on RNF2 regulation. In particular, the relevant cellular signaling pathways and potential clinical value of RNF2 in cancers are also discussed, suggesting its potential as an epigenetic biomarker and therapeutic target for these cancers.