PRMT3-mediated arginine methylation of IGF2BP1 promotes oxaliplatin resistance in liver cancer

Although oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy has been effective in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), primary or acquired resistance to oxaliplatin remains a major challenge in the clinic. Through functional screening using CRISPR/Cas9 activation library, transcriptomic profiling of clinical samples, and functional validation in vitro and in vivo, we identify PRMT3 as a key driver of oxaliplatin resistance. Mechanistically, PRMT3-mediated oxaliplatin-resistance is in part dependent on the methylation of IGF2BP1 at R452, which is critical for the function of IGF2BP1 in stabilizing the mRNA of HEG1, an effector of PRMT3-IGF2BP1 axis. Also, PRMT3 overexpression may serve as a biomarker for oxaliplatin resistance in HCC patients. Collectively, our study defines the PRTM3-IGF2BP1-HEG1 axis as important regulators and therapeutic targets in oxaliplatin-resistance and suggests the potential to use PRMT3 expression level in pretreatment biopsy as a biomarker for oxaliplatin-resistance in HCC patients. Despite being an effective treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), resistance to oxaliplatin presents a major obstacle. Here, the authors identify PRMT3-induced methylation of IGF2BP1 resulting in HEG1 stabilisation as a mechanism of oxaliplatin resistance in HCC.