A Novel Prognostic Signature of Mitophagy-Related E3 Ubiquitin Ligases in Breast Cancer

Mitophagy plays a critical role in maintaining mitochondrial quality and cellular homeostasis. But the specific contribution of mitophagy-related E3 ubiquitin ligases to prognosis remains largely unexplored. In this study, we identified a novel mitophagy-related E3 ubiquitin ligases prognostic signature using least absolute shrinkage and selector operator (LASSO) and multivariate Cox regression analyses in breast cancer. Based on median risk scores, patients were divided into high-risk and low-risk groups. Functional enrichment analyses were conducted to explore the biological differences between the two groups. Immune infiltration, drug sensitivity, and mitochondrial-related phenotypes were also analyzed to evaluate the clinical implications of the model. A four-gene signature (ARIH1, SIAH2, UBR5, and WWP2) was identified and Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated that the high-risk group had significantly worse overall survival (OS). High-risk patients exhibited disrupted mitochondrial metabolism and immune dysregulation with upregulated immune checkpoint molecules. Additionally, high-risk group exhibited higher sensitivity to several drugs targeting at Akt/PI3K/mTORC1 signaling axis. Accompanying mitochondrial metabolic dysregulation, mtDNA stress was elevated, contributing to the activation of senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) in the high-risk group. In conclusion, the identified signature provides a robust tool for risk stratification and offers insights into the interplay between mitophagy, immune modulation, and therapeutic responses for breast cancer.