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ZEB1: New advances in fibrosis and cancer

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Abstract

Zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1) is an important transcription factor in epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) which participates in the numerous life processes, such as embryonic development, fibrosis and tumor progression. ZEB1 has multiple functions in human body and plays a crucial part in some life processes. ZEB1 is vital for the formation and development of the organs in the embryonic period. The abnormal expression of ZEB1 is a predictor for the poor prognosis or the poor survival in several cancers. ZEB1 contributes to the occurrence of fibrosis, cancer and even chemoresistance. Some research is indicated that fibrosis is finally developed into the cancers. Therefore, ZEB1 is probably taken as a biomarker in fibrosis or cancer. In this review, it is predicted of the structure of ZEB1 and the protein binding sites of ZEB1 with some protein, and it is discussed about the roles of ZEB1 in fibrosis and cancer progression to elaborate the potential applications of ZEB1 in clinic.

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Funding

This study was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81973404, 81503058), Department of Education of Liaoning Province (No. JC2019034), Natural Science Foundation of Liaoning Province (No. 2014021065).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning, 110122, People’s Republic of China

    Lin Cheng, Ming-Yuan Zhou, Ying-Jian Gu, Lei Chen & Yun Wang

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  1. Lin Cheng
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  2. Ming-Yuan Zhou
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  3. Ying-Jian Gu
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  4. Lei Chen
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  5. Yun Wang
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Lin Cheng had the idea for the article, Lin Cheng, Ming-Yuan Zhou, Ying-Jian Gu, Lei Chen performed the literature search and data analysis, Lin Cheng drafted the work, and Yun Wang critically revised the work.

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Correspondence to Yun Wang.

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Cheng, L., Zhou, MY., Gu, YJ. et al. ZEB1: New advances in fibrosis and cancer. Mol Cell Biochem 476, 1643–1650 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-020-04036-7

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