TY  - JOUR
A1  - Byrne, Frances L.
A1  - Olzomer, Ellen M.
A1  - Lolies, Nina
A1  - Hoehn, Kyle L.
A1  - Wegner, Marthe-Susanna
T1  - Update on glycosphingolipids abundance in hepatocellular carcinoma
T2  - International journal of molecular sciences
N2  - Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most frequent type of primary liver cancer. Low numbers of HCC patients being suitable for liver resection or transplantation and multidrug resistance development during pharmacotherapy leads to high death rates for HCC patients. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of HCC etiology may contribute to the development of novel therapeutic strategies for prevention and treatment of HCC. UDP-glucose ceramide glycosyltransferase (UGCG), a key enzyme in glycosphingolipid metabolism, generates glucosylceramide (GlcCer), which is the precursor for all glycosphingolipids (GSLs). Since UGCG gene expression is altered in 0.8% of HCC tumors, GSLs may play a role in cellular processes in liver cancer cells. Here, we discuss the current literature about GSLs and their abundance in normal liver cells, Gaucher disease and HCC. Furthermore, we review the involvement of UGCG/GlcCer in multidrug resistance development, globosides as a potential prognostic marker for HCC, gangliosides as a potential liver cancer stem cell marker, and the role of sulfatides in tumor metastasis. Only a limited number of molecular mechanisms executed by GSLs in HCC are known, which we summarize here briefly. Overall, the role GSLs play in HCC progression and their ability to serve as biomarkers or prognostic indicators for HCC, requires further investigation.
KW  - GEMs
KW  - UGCG
KW  - gangliosides
KW  - globosides
KW  - glucosylceramide
KW  - glycolysis
KW  - lacto/neo-lacto series GSLs
KW  - normal liver cells
KW  - oxidative phosphorylation
KW  - sulfatides
Y1  - 2022
UR  - http://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/80413
UR  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-804131
SN  - 1422-0067
N1  - This work was funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (WE 5825/2-1). FB is supported by funding from the Cancer Institute NSW (Career Development Fellowship, 2021/CDF1120).
VL  - 23
IS  - 9, art. 4477
SP  - 1
EP  - 13
PB  - Molecular Diversity Preservation International
CY  - Basel
ER  -