ISSN: 1837-9664Journal of Cancer
Global reach, higher impact
J Cancer 2023; 14(17):3214-3226. doi:10.7150/jca.84267 This issue Cite
Review
The oncogenic potential of Rab-like protein 1A (RBEL1A) GTPase: The first review of RBEL1A research with future research directions and challenges
1. School of Nursing and Health Studies, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong.
2. Department of Pharmacology, State University of New York, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York, USA.
3. Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong.
4. Department of Surgery, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
5. Division of Medical Sciences & Graduate Entry Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom.
6. School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong.
7. Division of Science, Engineering and Health Studies (SEHS), College of Professional and Continuing Education, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong.
Abstract
Research on Rab-like protein 1A (RBEL1A) in the past two decades highlighted the oncogenic properties of this gene. Despite the emerging evidence, its importance in cancer biology was underrated. This is the first RBEL1A critical review covering its discovery, biochemistry, physiological functions, and clinical insights. RBEL1A expression at the appropriate levels appears essential in normal cells and tissues to maintain chromosomal stability; however, its overexpression is linked to tumorigenesis. Furthermore, the upstream and downstream targets of the RBEL1A signaling pathways will be discussed. Mechanistically, RBEL1A promotes cell proliferation signals by enhancing the Erk1/2, Akt, c-Myc, and CDK pathways while blunting the apoptotic signals via inhibitions on p53, Rb, and caspase pathways. More importantly, this review covers the clinical relevance of RBEL1A in the cancer field, such as drug resistance and poor overall survival rate. Also, this review points out the bottle-necks of the RBEL1A research and its future research directions. It is becoming clear that RBEL1A could potentially serve as a valuable target of anticancer therapy. Genetic and pharmacological researches are expected to facilitate the identification and development of RBEL1A inhibitors as cancer therapeutics in the future, which could undoubtedly improve the management of human malignancy.
Keywords: RBEL1A, GTPase, oncogene, cancer
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