Fig. 7: circIPP2A2 served as a scaffold in modulating the Hornerin/PI3K/AKT/GSK3β axis.

a Western blotting was used to detect the key protein level of the PI3K/AKT/GSK3β signaling pathway in circIPP2A2 stable knockdown and Hornerin overexpression. b The activity of the PI3K/AKT/GSK3β signaling pathway was measured by western blotting after METTL1 downregulation. c IP assay was performed to assess the binding affinity of Hornerin with METTL1, PI3K, AKT, and GSK3β. d RIP assay was employed to measure the interaction between PI3K and the specific sequences of circIPP2A2. e Immunofluorescence using anti-Hornerin (red) and anti-PI3K (green) antibodies were conducted to evaluate the alteration in affinity between Hornerin and PI3K upon silencing of circIPP2A2. f IP assay was used to observe alterations in the interaction between PI3K and Hornerin within circIPP2A2 knockdown HCC cells. ns, not significant; *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001; ****P < 0.0001.