Published online Feb 27, 2021. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v13.i2.96
Peer-review started: October 17, 2020
First decision: December 1, 2020
Revised: December 21, 2020
Accepted: December 29, 2020
Article in press: December 29, 2020
Published online: February 27, 2021
Processing time: 109 Days and 22.3 Hours
For a long time, colorectal cancer (CRC) has been ranked among the top cancer-related mortality rates, threatening human health. As a significant post-translational modification, O-GlcNAcylation plays an essential role in complex life activities. Related studies have found that the occurrence, development, and metastasis of CRC are all related to abnormal O-GlcNAcylation and participate in many critical biological processes, such as gene transcription, signal transduction, cell growth, and differentiation. Recently, nucleotide sugar analogs, tumor-specific carbohydrate vaccine, SIRT1 longevity gene, dendritic cells as targets, and NOTCH gene have become effective methods to induce antitumor therapy. Not long ago, checkpoint kinase 1 and checkpoint kinase 2 were used as therapeutic targets for CRC, but there are still many problems to be solved. With an in-depth study of protein chip, mass spectrometry, chromatography, and other technologies, O-GlcNAcylation research will accelerate rapidly, which may provide new ideas for the research and development of antitumor drugs and the discovery of new CRC diagnostic markers.
Core Tip: This article mainly reviews the occurrence and development of O-GlcNAcylation in colorectal cancer and the corresponding therapeutic targets. After a thorough review of the literature, we analyze and summarize O-GlcNAcylation research and predict that investigations will accelerate rapidly, which may provide new ideas for the development of antitumor drugs and promote the discovery of new colorectal cancer diagnostic markers.