Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41692002›Full record

ArticleNeoplasia (New York, N.Y.)2026

A novel microprotein MUCP1 promotes colorectal cancer metabolic reprogramming by regulating mitochondrial succinate transport.

Junjie Nie, Xinwei Liu, Mu Xu, Xinliang Gu, Shangshang Hu, Huiling Sun, Linpeng Zhou, Tao Xu, Yuqin Pan, Shukui Wang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Neoplasia (New York, N.Y.), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Junjie NieGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China.
Xinwei LiuGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China.
Mu XuDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 21000, Jiangsu, China.
Xinliang GuGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China.
Shangshang HuGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China; School of Medicine, Southeast University, Nanjing 210009, Jiangsu, China.
Huiling SunGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China.
Linpeng ZhouGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China; School of Basic Medicine and Clinical Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 211122, Jiangsu, China.
Tao XuGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China. Electronic address: 18360861755@163.com.
Yuqin PanGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China. Electronic address: panyuqin01@163.com.
Shukui WangGeneral Clinical Research Center, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China; Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center on Cancer Personalized Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, Jiangsu, China. Electronic address: sk_wang@njmu.edu.cn.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMetabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of colorectal cancer (CRC), yet the molecular regulators that orchestrate this process remain incompletely understood. Although many long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) possess protein-coding potential, their translational products and metabolic functions have been largely overlooked. Here, we identify MUCP1, a microprotein encoded by the lncRNA MUC20-OT1, as a critical regulator of mitochondrial metabolism and epigenetic remodeling in CRC.

methodsMulti-omics data were integrated to identify MUC20-OT1 as a candidate lncRNA encoding a functional microprotein. Fusion reporter plasmids, mass spectrometry, and immunoblotting were used to validate MUCP1 translation and mitochondrial localization. Functional assays, metabolomic profiling,

resultsThe microprotein MUCP1, encoded by the lncRNA MUC20-OT1, serves as an auxiliary regulator of SLC25A10-mediated mitochondrial succinate transport. MUCP1 is upregulated during CRC progression and localizes in the mitochondrial outer membrane, where it facilitates the balance of mitochondrial succinate metabolism. Elevated extramitochondrial succinate subsequently enhances H3K4me3 histone modifications, promoting the transcription of enzymes involved in glutamine metabolism and sustaining the high metabolic demands of CRC cells.

conclusionsThis study identifies MUCP1 as a novel lncRNA-encoded microprotein that maintains metabolic homeostasis in CRC by coupling mitochondrial succinate transport to histone methylation. MUCP1 might be a promising metabolic vulnerability and therapeutic target in CRC.

Indexed as

Colorectal NeoplasmsMitochondriaSuccinic AcidAnimalsBiological TransportCell Line, TumorGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansMetabolic ReprogrammingMiceMicropeptidesMicropeptidesSuccinic AcidGlutamine metabolismH3K4me3MUCP1SLC25A10Succinate

Identifiers

PMID41692002
PMCPMC12925303

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.