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Sequential stabilization of RNF220 by RLIM and ZC4H2 during cerebellum development and Shh-group medulloblastoma progression
Yuwei Li1,2,† , Chencheng Yang1,2,† , Huishan Wang1,2 , Ling Zhao3 , Qinghua Kong4 , Yu Cang5 , Shuhua Zhao6 , Longbao Lv3 , Yan Li4 , Bingyu Mao1,7,* , Pengcheng Ma1,*
1State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China
2Kunming College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650203, China
3Experimental Animal Center, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China
4Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China
5Department of Urology, the Affiliated Hospital of Yunnan University, Kunming 650021, China
6First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650032, China
7Center for Excellence in Animal Evolution and Genetics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China
These authors contributed equally to this work.
*Correspondence to:Bingyu Mao , Email:mao@mail.kiz.ac.cn Pengcheng Ma , Email:kunmapch@mail.kiz.ac.cn
J Mol Cell Biol, Volume 14, Issue 1, January 2022, mjab082,  https://doi.org/10.1093/jmcb/mjab082
Keyword: ZC4H2, RLIM, RNF220, Shh signaling, cerebellum, medulloblastoma (MB)

Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling is essential for the proliferation of cerebellar granule neuron progenitors (CGNPs), and its misregulation is linked to various disorders, including cerebellar cancer medulloblastoma (MB). During vertebrate neural development, RNF220, a ubiquitin E3 ligase, is involved in spinal cord patterning by modulating the subcellular location of glioma-associated oncogene homologs (Glis) through ubiquitination. RNF220 is also required for full activation of Shh signaling during cerebellum development in an epigenetic manner through targeting embryonic ectoderm development. ZC4H2 was reported to be involved in spinal cord patterning by acting as an RNF220 stabilizer. Here, we provided evidence to show that ZC4H2 is also required for full activation of Shh signaling in CGNP and MB progression by stabilizing RNF220. In addition, we found that the ubiquitin E3 ligase RING finger LIM domain-binding protein (RLIM) is responsible for ZC4H2 stabilization via direct ubiquitination, through which RNF220 is also thus stabilized. RLIM is a direct target of Shh signaling and is also required for full activation of Shh signaling in CGNP and MB cell proliferation. We further provided clinical evidence to show that the RLIM‒ZC4H2‒RNF220 cascade is involved in Shh-group MB progression. Disease-causative human RLIM and ZC4H2 mutations affect their interaction and regulation. Therefore, our study sheds light on the regulation of Shh signaling during cerebellar development and MB progression and provides insights into neural disorders caused by RLIM or ZC4H2 mutations.