Aspn, also known as Asporin, is a gene that has been associated with multiple biological processes and diseases. In endometriosis, it is a potential biomarker and is related to immune infiltration. High expression of ASPN is associated with r-AFS stage, age, and lesion location, and it has a positive connection with T-cell, B-cell, fibroblast, and endothelial cell infiltration, while a negative correlation with cytotoxic lymphocyte and NK-cell infiltration. Immune checkpoint gene expression is also positively associated with ASPN expression [1].

In colorectal cancer, ASPN is highly expressed in oxaliplatin-resistant patients and is closely correlated with a poor prognosis. Down-regulation of ASPN reversed oxaliplatin resistance and promoted cell apoptosis both in vitro and in vivo [2]. In gastric cancer, ASPN, along with MATN3, is significantly upregulated in cancer tissues, and their co-overexpression enhances tumor growth and metastasis, suggesting the MATN3-ASPN axis as a potential therapeutic target [3]. In osteoporosis, ASPN synergizes with HAPLN1 to inhibit the osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells and extracellular matrix mineralization of osteoblasts and promote osteoclastogenesis [4].

In conclusion, Aspn plays crucial roles in multiple disease conditions such as endometriosis, colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, and osteoporosis. Research on Aspn, especially through functional studies in in vivo models, has revealed its significance in disease-related biological processes, providing potential directions for therapeutic strategies in these disease areas.

References:

1. Wang, Li, Sun, Jing. 2022. ASPN Is a Potential Biomarker and Associated with Immune Infiltration in Endometriosis. In Genes, 13, . doi:10.3390/genes13081352. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36011263/

2. Huang, Cheng-Zhi, Zhou, Yue, Tong, Qi-Song, Du, Jin-Zhi, Yao, Xue-Qing. 2022. Precision medicine-guided co-delivery of ASPN siRNA and oxaliplatin by nanoparticles to overcome chemoresistance of colorectal cancer. In Biomaterials, 290, 121827. doi:10.1016/j.biomaterials.2022.121827. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36228517/

3. Li, Jing, Xie, Bo, Wang, Hu, Wang, QingKang, Wu, YongYou. . Investigating MATN3 and ASPN as novel drivers of gastric cancer progression via EMT pathways. In Human molecular genetics, 33, 2035-2050. doi:10.1093/hmg/ddae129. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39301785/

4. Zhou, Guohui, Yan, Xinmin, Chen, Zhenfei, Zeng, Xing, Wu, Fangqian. 2023. ASPN Synergizes with HAPLN1 to Inhibit the Osteogenic Differentiation of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stromal Cells and Extracellular Matrix Mineralization of Osteoblasts. In Orthopaedic surgery, 15, 2423-2434. doi:10.1111/os.13803. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37427673/