Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42848310›Full record

ReviewMedical oncology (Northwood, London, England)2026

Silencing the genome: role of HUSH complex in retrotransposon regulation and cancer development.

Hawaida Ahmad, Khadija Tariq, Aqsa Mehreen, Imran Khan Yousafzai, Amina Mahmood, Shaista Aslam, Asma Saleem Qazi, Zaineb Akram, Rida Fatima Saeed

Abstract readReview
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Review in Medical oncology (Northwood, London, England), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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

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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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

9 authors.

Hawaida Ahmad *Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
Khadija Tariq *Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
Aqsa MehreenDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
Imran Khan YousafzaiDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
Amina MahmoodDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
Shaista AslamDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
Asma Saleem QaziDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan. asma.qazi@numspak.edu.pk.
Zaineb AkramDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
Rida Fatima SaeedDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Medical Science, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan. rida.saeed@numspak.edu.pk.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Retrotransposons comprise approximately 42% of the human genome and contribute to genomic diversity. Their improper regulation leads to genomic instability and, potentially, cancer. The Human Silencing Hub (HUSH) complex plays a significant role in silencing the genome via epigenetic regulation, specifically through H3K9me3 deposition. Its current identified function is to maintain the genomic stability; however, there is still ambiguity and further study is required about the exact mechanism by which the HUSH complex controls the retrotransposon activity and how its dysfunction contributes to cancer. This systematic review examines genome-wide transcriptional and epigenetic studies whose focus is the role of the HUSH complex in the silencing of retrotransposons and its consequences in cancer. The study also aims to clarify how HUSH complex dysregulation affects gene expression patterns and contributes to tumorigenesis. A comprehensive literature search was conducted through PubMed, ScienceDirect, ProQuest, and Lilac databases, yielding 693 articles. After implementing predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, 6 studies were selected for analysis. The data extraction from precisely included studies focused on HUSH complex relations with retrotransposons and its effect on cancer-related genes. The study highlights the significant role of the HUSH complex, which efficiently silences retrotransposons like LINE-1 and ERVs, especially by H3K9me3 deposition. Through immune evasion, DNA damage, and retrotransposon reactivation, dysregulation of HUSH components, SETDB1 and MPP8, has been associated with the advancement of cancer. MPP8 knockdown caused differentiation in Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), but SETDB1 deletion increased tumor immunogenicity in melanoma. Conclusively, HUSH complex is a key epigenetic regulator of retrotransposons, and its dysfunction contributes to cancer pathogenesis. HUSH components (e.g., SETDB1, MPP8) present, as potential therapeutic and diagnostic biomarkers for different cancers.

Indexed as

Gene SilencingNeoplasmsRetroelementsAnimalsEpigenesis, GeneticGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticGenome, HumanHistone-Lysine N-MethyltransferaseHumansPhosphoproteinsHistone-Lysine N-MethyltransferaseMPHOSPH8 protein, humanPhosphoproteinsRetroelementsCancer geneticsEpigenetic silencingHUSH complexRetrotransposons

Identifiers

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Registered trials

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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.