Regulation of the expression of cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding proteins for the treatment of cancer

Regulated mRNA translation plays an important role in normal cellular functions and cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding proteins (CPEBs) are the key factors that control the elongation of poly(A) tail during translation. The expression of various CPEBs has been noted to be linked to tumorigenesis, tumor growth, invasiveness and angiogenesis; however, different CPEBs appear to play diverse roles in cancer. The evidence from the literature suggests that CPEB1 and CPEB3 act more likely as tumor suppressors; in contrast, CPEB2 and CPEB4 mainly exert oncogenic effects. In addition, different CPEB subtypes may interact with each other to regulate tumorigenesis. All four CPEB mRNAs contain multiple microRNA (miRNA) binding sites, while the functions of CPEBs are regulated by various miRNAs. These results indicate that CPEBs play a significant role in tumorigenesis; therefore, manipulation of the expression of different subtypes of CPEBs might modulate the behavior of cancer cells and provide new therapeutic concepts for cancer therapy. However, more studies are required to clarify their definite role in tumor development.