Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41774266›Full record

ReviewApoptosis : an international journal on programmed cell death2026

Mitochondrial function meets oncology: the multifaceted role of TFAM across cancer types.

Jie Wang, Ruicheng Wu, Fanglin Shao, Zhouting Tuo, Xinrui Li, Koo Han Yoo, Wuran Wei, Zhipeng Wang, Dengxiong Li, Dechao Feng

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Apoptosis : an international journal on programmed cell death, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing 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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
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.

Jie Wang *Department of Urology, Urology and Nephrology Center, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital (Affiliated People's Hospital), Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, China.
Ruicheng Wu *Department of Urology, Institute of Urology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China.
Fanglin Shao *Department of Urology, Urology and Nephrology Center, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital (Affiliated People's Hospital), Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, China.
Zhouting Tuo *Department of Urology, Tianjin Institute of Urology, The Second Hospital of Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.
Xinrui LiDepartment of Rehabilitation, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, 646000, China.
Koo Han YooDepartment of Urology, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, South Korea.
Wuran WeiDepartment of Urology, Institute of Urology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China.
Zhipeng WangDepartment of Urology, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 610072, China. zhipengwang.ymedx@gmail.com.
Dengxiong LiDepartment of Urology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University (Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine), Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. lidengxiongwch@stu.scu.edu.cn.
Dechao FengDepartment of Urology, Urology and Nephrology Center, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital (Affiliated People's Hospital), Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, China. dechao.feng@ucl.ac.uk.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM) is indispensable for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) maintenance and transcription, governing cellular bioenergetics. Despite its known physiological importance, TFAM plays a complex and often paradoxical role in cancer biology. This study integrates pan-cancer bioinformatics analyses with experimental evidence to comprehensively elucidate TFAM's multifaceted impact on tumorigenesis. We systematically investigated the heterogeneity of TFAM across diverse cancer types, specifically focusing on its regulatory mechanisms in metabolic reprogramming, signal transduction, and immune microenvironment remodeling. Our analysis reveals that TFAM functions as a critical node connecting mitochondrial integrity to tumor progression, balancing tumor-promoting and tumor-suppressive roles depending on the context. Finally, we discuss the challenges of targeting TFAM, such as off-target toxicity, and highlight emerging precision oncology strategies, including mitochondria-targeted delivery systems, that aim to exploit these mitochondrial vulnerabilities.

Indexed as

DNA-Binding ProteinsMitochondriaMitochondrial ProteinsNeoplasmsTranscription FactorsAnimalsComputational BiologyDNA, MitochondrialGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansMetabolic ReprogrammingSignal TransductionTumor MicroenvironmentDNA-Binding ProteinsDNA, MitochondrialMitochondrial ProteinsTFAM protein, humanTranscription FactorsBioinformaticsMitochondrial functionPan-cancer analysisTFAMTherapeutic strategy

Identifiers

PMID41774266
PMCPMC12957451

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.