RBM3 (RNA-binding motif protein 3) is a cold-shock protein that has garnered interest due to its involvement in RNA metabolism, stress response, and potentially tumor biology.
Overall, elevated RBM3 expression tends to correlate with improved prognosis in several cancers, including breast, colorectal, ovarian, and prostate cancers, among others. Its consistent association with better outcomes has highlighted RBM3 as a promising prognostic biomarker.
3. Direction of Regulation in Cancer
-Often upregulated in tumor cells relative to adjacent normal tissue.
-Upregulation reflects selection for stress tolerance, not mutational activation.
Important nuance: high RBM3 expression does not uniformly predict aggressiveness.
4. Dual Clinical Associations (Key Concept)
A. Favorable Prognostic Association (Common in Several Solid Tumors)
In breast, ovarian, colorectal, prostate, and some lung cancers:
High RBM3 expression correlates with:
-Better differentiation
-Improved response to therapy
-Longer overall survival
RBM3 is best understood as a “quality-control” factor:
-Tumors with controlled proliferation and intact stress responses → high RBM3, better prognosis
-Tumors driven by extreme oncogenic stress (e.g., high MYC/FOXM1, chromosomal instability) → RBM3 becomes insufficient or uncoupled from control, and prognosis worsens
Thus, RBM3 is not a driver, but a state marker.
Therapeutic and Biomarker Implications
-Biomarker: RBM3 is useful for prognostic stratification in several epithelial cancers.
-Therapy response: High RBM3 often predicts better chemotherapy sensitivity, likely due to preserved apoptotic competence after damage.
-Targeting: RBM3 itself is not a practical drug target; its value lies in phenotyping tumor state, not inhibition.
|