Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Gastroenterol. Sep 21, 2026; 32(35): 121494
Published online Sep 21, 2026. doi: 10.3748/wjg.121494
Published online Sep 21, 2026. doi: 10.3748/wjg.121494
Tn antigen-driven downregulation of podoplanin promotes colorectal cancer invasion
Li-Wen Fan, Qi Lin, Jia-Xin Du, School of Clinical Medicine, The Hebei University of Engineering, Handan 056000, Hebei Province, China
Xin-Zhe Wu, Zi-Wei Liu, Xi-Chen Dong, Medical Research Center, Beijing Chao-Yang Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100021, China
Yan-Tao Tian, Department of Pancreatic and Gastric Surgery, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100021, China
Dong-Kui Xu, Department of Very Important Person, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100021, China
Co-corresponding authors: Xi-Chen Dong and Dong-Kui Xu.
Author contributions: Fan LW performed the experiments and wrote the original manuscript; Wu XZ performed the analysis of single-cell RNA sequencing data; Liu ZW conducted parts of the experimental work; Lin Q and Du JX contributed to data analysis; Dong XC was responsible for overall study design and supervision; Tian YT was primarily responsible for data collection; Xu KD as the principal investigator of the project, was responsible for the overall design and strategic direction of the study, providing framing the key scientific questions, participated in the design of validation of critical methodologies, and the construction of the analytical framework for the results, offered crucial feedback on the scientific logic, data interpretation, and conclusion development of the manuscript, and performed comprehensive review, revision, and final approval of the submitted work.
AI contribution statement: AI tools (specifically ChatGPT) were used solely for linguistic refinement and formatting assistance. No AI tool was involved in the generation of research data, interpretation of results, or formulation of conclusions. All AI-generated outputs were critically reviewed and revised by the authors.
Supported by the National High Level Hospital Clinical Research Funding; and National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 82372989.
Institutional review board statement: This study does not involve any human experiments.
Institutional animal care and use committee statement: All animal experiments were performed in accordance with the Guidelines for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of the National Cancer Center/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (approval No. NCC2023A165).
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
ARRIVE guidelines statement: The authors have read the ARRIVE guidelines, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the ARRIVE guidelines.
Data sharing statement: All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this article. Further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author. The public dataset used in this study is available in the Gene Expression Omnibus repository under accession number GSE132465.
Corresponding author: Dong-Kui Xu, MD, Professor, Department of Very Important Person, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, No. 17 Panjiayuan Nanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100021, China. 13691583382@163.com
Received: March 27, 2026
Revised: May 9, 2026
Accepted: June 18, 2026
Published online: September 21, 2026
Processing time: 146 Days and 8.5 Hours
Revised: May 9, 2026
Accepted: June 18, 2026
Published online: September 21, 2026
Processing time: 146 Days and 8.5 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This study is the first to report that the tumor-suppressive function of the key glycoprotein podoplanin (PDPN) depends strictly on its intact O-glycosylation. When T-synthase deficiency leads to Tn antigen exposure, abnormal PDPN O-glycosylation occurs, resulting in decreased protein stability and functional loss, thereby abolishing the inhibitory effects of PDPN on cell proliferation and migration. These findings provide a new theoretical foundation for the use of glycosylation-dependent PDPN as a prognostic biomarker and targeted therapeutic strategy.