Ubiquitin C‑terminal hydrolase‑L1: A new cancer marker and therapeutic target with dual effects (Review)

Xiaowei Wang; Na Zhang; Meihua Li; Tao Hong; Wei Meng; Taohui Ouyang

doi:10.3892/ol.2023.13709

Ubiquitin C‑terminal hydrolase‑L1: A new cancer marker and therapeutic target with dual effects (Review)

Oncol Lett. 2023 Feb 8;25(3):123. doi: 10.3892/ol.2023.13709. eCollection 2023 Mar.

Authors

Xiaowei Wang^{1

2}, Na Zhang³, Meihua Li¹, Tao Hong¹, Wei Meng¹, Taohui Ouyang¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurosurgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330006, P.R. China.
² Department of The Second Clinical Medical College of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330006, P.R. China.
³ Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330006, P.R. China.

Abstract

Ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase-L1 (UCH-L1), a member of the lesser-known deubiquitinating enzyme family, has deubiquitinase and ubiquitin (Ub) ligase activity and the role of stabilizing Ub. UCH-L1 was first discovered in the brain and is associated with regulating cell differentiation, proliferation, transcriptional regulation and numerous other biological processes. UCH-L1 is predominantly expressed in the brain and serves a role in tumor promotion or inhibition. There is still controversy about the effect of UCH-L1 dysregulation in cancer and its mechanisms are unknown. Extensive research to investigate the mechanism of UCH-L1 in different types of cancer is key for the future treatment of UCH-L1-associated cancer. The present review details the molecular structure and function of UCH-L1. The role of UCH-L1 in different types of cancer is also summarized and how novel treatment targets provide a theoretical foundation in cancer research is discussed.

Keywords: cancer; deubiquitylation; inhibitor; invasion; metastasis; ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase-L1.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

The present review was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 13009038), Project of Science and Technology Department of Jiangxi Province (grant nos. 20192BAB215024 and 20202BABL206099).