PXD059625

PXD059625 is an original dataset announced via ProteomeXchange.

Title	Piwil-2 is associated with advanced tumor stage and poor outcome in Merkel cell carcinomas
Description	Merkel cell carcinomas (MCCs) are rare, highly aggressive skin cancers with poor outcome due to early lymphatic tumor spread and frequent recurrences. MCCs mostly occur in the head and neck and are mainly caused by an infection with the Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV). Increasing evidence suggests that Piwil-2 and small non-coding PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) play an important role in solid malignancies and we thought that this might also be the case for MCCs. Therefore, Piwil-2 expression was first evaluated in 27 MCC specimens and correlated with oncological outcome. We found an association with high Piwil-2 expression and advanced tumor stage, MCPyV positivity and poor outcome. Next, we utilized siRNAs for Piwil-2 knock-down in MCC cells. Downregulation of Piwil-2 caused a significant change of 202 different piRNAs and 419 proteins. Interestingly, proteins related to viral driven MCC pathways (TRRAP, BRD8, PRIM2, ORC4) were significantly downregulated. Moreover, there was a moderate cell cycle arrest of cells in the G0/G1-phase, as well as a significant upregulation of SOX-2, a key regulator of Merkel cells. Altogether, Piwil-2 poses a poor prognosticator in MCCs, which is linked to MCC oncogenesis and SOX-2. Further research is needed to better understand underlying mechanisms and to prove their clinical relevance.
HostingRepository	PRIDE
AnnounceDate	2025-11-17
AnnouncementXML	Submission_2025-11-16_17:53:12.975.xml
DigitalObjectIdentifier
ReviewLevel	Peer-reviewed dataset
DatasetOrigin	Original dataset
RepositorySupport	Unsupported dataset by repository
PrimarySubmitter	Klaus Kratochwill
SpeciesList	scientific name: Homo sapiens (Human); NCBI TaxID: NEWT:9606;
ModificationList	monohydroxylated residue; iodoacetamide derivatized residue
Instrument	Q Exactive Plus

Revision	Datetime	Status	ChangeLog Entry
0	2025-01-10 02:25:20	ID requested
⏵ 1	2025-11-16 17:53:13	announced

Janik S, Pammer J, Simader E, Kotowski U, Grasl S, Houben R, Copic D, Mildner M, Mitulovic G, Bilban M, Derdak S, Unterwurzacher M, Kratochwill K, Erovic BM, Piwil-2 represents a poor prognosticator in Merkel cell carcinomas that regulates oncoproteins, cell cycle arrest and SOX-2 expression. Sci Rep, 15(1):39198(2025) [pubmed]

10.1038/s41598-025-06247-8;

submitter keyword: SOX-2, MCPyV,Merkel cell carcinoma, Piwil-2, piRNA

Dr Klaus Kratochwill
contact affiliation	Medical University of Vienna
contact email	klaus.kratochwill@meduniwien.ac.at
lab head
Klaus Kratochwill
contact affiliation	Medical University of Vienna
contact email	klaus.kratochwill@meduniwien.ac.at
dataset submitter

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PRIDE project URI

• PRIDE
  1. PXD059625
     1. Label: PRIDE project
     2. Name: Piwil-2 is associated with advanced tumor stage and poor outcome in Merkel cell carcinomas