Ferritinophagy in the etiopathogenic mechanism of related diseases

Ferritinophagy: research advance and clinical significance in cancers

“…Ferritin is a protein complex composed of ferritin heavy chain (FTH1) and ferritin light chain (FTL) subunits, which functions to bind and store excess iron within cells [ 1 ]. Ferritinophagy plays a crucial role in maintaining intracellular iron homeostasis by facilitating the degradation and recycling of stored iron, thereby enabling its utilization in cellular processes, while concurrently mitigating iron-induced oxidative damage resulting from excessive iron accumulation [ 2 ]. Mancias et al first identified and named the process of ferritinophagy by a discovering nuclear receptor coactivator 4 (NCOA4), a cargo receptor for iron autophagic degradation, through quantitative proteomics, and its mediated ferritin turnover contributes to elevated intracellular iron levels and ferroptosis [ 3 ].…”

“…The process of ferritinophagy ultimately leads to the release of iron ions from degraded ferritin molecules into the cytoplasm, allowing them to be utilized for cellular functions such as heme synthesis or the generation of ROS [ 5 ]. Ferritinophagy has been shown to play an important role in a variety of physiological processes, including cellular differentiation, erythropoiesis, and immune response [ 2 ]. Furthermore, dysregulation of ferritinophagy has been implicated in the pathophysiology of a variety of diseases, including cancer [ 6 ], neurodegenerative diseases [ 7 ], and iron overload disorders such as hemochromatosis [ 8 ].…”