Lipid Droplet-Associated Factors, PNPLA3, TM6SF2, and HSD17B Proteins in Hepatopancreatobiliary Cancer

Abstract

Pancreatic and liver cancer are leading causes of cancer deaths, and by 2030, they are projected to become the second and the third deadliest cancer respectively. Cancer metabolism, especially lipid metabolism, plays an important role in progression and metastasis of many types of cancer, including pancreatic and liver cancer. Lipid droplets are intracellular organelles that store neutral lipids, but also act as molecular messengers, and signaling factors. It is becoming increasingly evident that alterations in the regulation of lipid droplets and their associated factors influence the risk of developing not only metabolic disease but also fibrosis and cancer. In the current review article, we summarized recent findings concerning the roles of lipid droplet-associated factors, patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing 3, Transmembrane 6 superfamily member 2, and 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 11 and 13 as well as genetic variants in pancreatic and hepatic diseases. A better understanding of cancer type- and cell type-specific roles of lipid droplet-associated factors is important for establishing new therapeutic options in the future.

RETRACTED ARTICLE: Integration of clinical and spatial data to explore lipid metabolism-related genes for predicting prognosis and immune microenvironment in gliomas

“…However, the speci c role of SCD in glioma remains unclear [26]. The increased expression of acylglycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase 2 (AGPAT2) can promote the accumulation of LD and cell survival of various cancer cells [27,28]. FABP5 promotes the progression of various cancers and may be associated with poor prognosis of various malignant cancers, including cervical cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer and colorectal cancer [29].…”

Clinical Significance and Potential Role of LSM4 Overexpression in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: An Integrated Analysis Based on Multiple Databases

“…It played a key role in the malignant biological behavior of cancer and was beneficial to the survival, proliferation, invasion and metastasis of cancer cells ( Ma and Zong, 2020 ). For example, fatty acid metabolism played an essential role in the progression and metastasis of various cancers, including PC and HCC ( Sunami et al, 2021 ). In general, the results of GSEA analysis supported the previous speculation that overexpression of LSM4 seemed to be more closely related to the promotion of growth and metastasis of HCC cells.…”

The role of DGAT1 and DGAT2 in regulating tumor cell growth and their potential clinical implications

“…Tumor cells convert increased free FAs into cell-harmless neutral lipids and store them in LDs with the help of DGATs, thereby decreasing their further oxidation and protecting tumor cells from ROS and lipotoxicity [ 104 , 115 – 117 ]. Accumulation of LDs is prevalent in a variety of tumor cells, especially those of patients who are obese [ 3 , 14 , 118 , 119 ]. The expression of DGAT1 in glioblastomas (GBM) tissues was significantly higher than that of DGAT2, and the expression of DGAT1 in poorly differentiated tumor tissues was higher than that in well-differentiated tumor tissues [ 104 ].…”