Affinage

FLOT2

Flotillin-2 · UniProt Q14254

Length
428 aa
Mass
47.1 kDa
Annotated
2026-06-09
32 papers in source corpus 17 papers cited in narrative 17 extracted findings
Cross-family judge vs UniProt: Affinage preferred faithfulness: 5/6 claims corpus-supported (83%)

Mechanistic narrative

Synthesis pass · prose summary of the discoveries below

FLOT2 is a lipid raft scaffolding protein that organizes membrane microdomains to coordinate intercellular ligand transport, receptor/complex stabilization, and downstream oncogenic and inflammatory signaling (PMID:36040316, PMID:36632460). At the membrane, it recruits partners into detergent-resistant rafts: it forms a complex with podocin and nephrin through direct SPFH-domain contact to stabilize the slit-diaphragm in podocytes (PMID:36632460), directly binds synaptopodin and protects it from K48-linked polyubiquitination and proteasomal degradation (PMID:40681143), and stabilizes EphA2 to drive Akt/NF-κB signaling in glioma (PMID:33631676). Acting with the Wnt co-receptor Ror2, FLOT2 promotes cytoneme-based intercellular transport of Wnt ligands, a function conserved from cancer cells to zebrafish embryogenesis (PMID:36040316). FLOT2 also binds PLCγ2 to support osteoclastogenesis (PMID:40816424) and interacts with LAMP2 to promote autophagosome-lysosome fusion (PMID:40066518). Across multiple cancers it activates pro-tumorigenic cascades, including Raf/MEK/ERK–Twist-driven EMT (PMID:28560058), PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling (PMID:38914215), and STAT3-dependent transcriptional programs (PMID:38161417). FLOT2 abundance is tightly controlled post-translationally—HDAC6 deacetylates FLOT2 at K211 to block its proteasomal degradation (PMID:39174882)—and at the mRNA level through m6A-dependent regulation by the HNRNPH1/METTL14/IGF2BP3 axis (PMID:39570559) and FTO-mediated demethylation (PMID:38914215), as well as by transcriptional inputs and miRNA targeting (PMID:36632460, PMID:35173544, PMID:26576674).

Mechanistic history

Synthesis pass · year-by-year structured walk · 10 steps
  1. 2015 Medium

    Established that FLOT2 is a functionally required driver of EMT and a regulated target, answering whether its expression is rate-limiting for invasion.

    Evidence miR-449a 3'UTR luciferase targeting, silencing, and TGF-β-induced EMT assays in gastric cancer cells

    PMID:26576674

    Open questions at the time
    • Does not define the molecular activity by which FLOT2 enables EMT
    • No in vivo validation in this study
  2. 2017 Medium

    Connected FLOT2 to a specific oncogenic kinase cascade, showing how it converts to a proliferative/metastatic phenotype.

    Evidence Gain/loss-of-function with Raf/MEK/ERK1/2 and Twist pathway readouts plus xenograft in HCC; LXR agonist modulation of FLOT2/DHHC5 and Akt in breast cancer cells

    PMID:28560058 PMID:28739689

    Open questions at the time
    • Direct physical link between FLOT2 and Raf/MEK/ERK components not shown
    • LXR-FLOT2 transcriptional connection only pharmacologically inferred
  3. 2019 Medium

    Linked FLOT2 raft localization to a developmental context, showing dynamic raft partitioning during neural differentiation.

    Evidence Sucrose density fractionation and Fyn co-localization in differentiating P19C6 cells

    PMID:31455216

    Open questions at the time
    • Fyn phosphorylation of FLOT2 inferred, not directly demonstrated
    • Functional consequence of raft enrichment for differentiation untested
  4. 2021 Medium

    Demonstrated FLOT2 acts as a receptor-stabilizing scaffold, placing it upstream of EphA2 in a pro-survival axis.

    Evidence Reciprocal Co-IP, siRNA knockdown, and EphA2 rescue in glioma cells

    PMID:33631676

    Open questions at the time
    • Mechanism by which FLOT2 protects EphA2 from turnover not defined
    • Single-lab evidence
  5. 2022 High

    Defined a membrane-scaffolding role distinct from signal transduction—FLOT2 controls cytoneme-based intercellular Wnt ligand transport with Ror2, conserved in vivo.

    Evidence Live cytoneme imaging, genetic Flot2/Ror2 manipulation, and zebrafish embryogenesis model

    PMID:36040316

    Open questions at the time
    • Biochemical basis of Wnt3 loading onto cytonemes unresolved
    • Structural requirements of the FLOT2-Ror2 interface not mapped
  6. 2022 Medium

    Embedded FLOT2 in transcriptional feedback circuits, showing it both responds to and reinforces oncogenic transcription factor activity.

    Evidence Co-IP, ChIP, luciferase, and rescue experiments delineating FLOT2-STAT3-CD109-TGF-β and TBL1X/TCF4-FLOT2-c-myc loops in NPC

    PMID:35173544 PMID:38161417

    Open questions at the time
    • How a membrane scaffold stabilizes nuclear/cytoplasmic STAT3 mechanistically unclear
    • Loops characterized only in NPC contexts
  7. 2023 High

    Established FLOT2 as a direct lipid-raft organizer of the slit diaphragm via SPFH-domain interaction, with a defined upstream transcriptional regulator.

    Evidence Co-IP, SPFH domain mapping, sucrose fractionation, conditional KO/transgenic mice, and KLF15 ChIP/luciferase

    PMID:36632460

    Open questions at the time
    • Whether raft recruitment alone or additional chaperoning stabilizes the complex unresolved
    • Stoichiometry of podocin-nephrin-FLOT2 assembly unknown
  8. 2023 Medium

    Extended FLOT2 function to immune regulation and to disease-associated raft disruption, showing context-dependent suppressive roles.

    Evidence B cell-specific Flot2 KO with RNA-seq/ELISA in CLP sepsis; descriptive loss of Flot2 in Npc1-null cerebellar neurons with pharmacological rescue

    PMID:37539272 PMID:37688314

    Open questions at the time
    • Molecular target of FLOT2 in Beff cytokine suppression unidentified
    • NPC link is correlative without mechanistic dissection
  9. 2024 Medium

    Resolved how FLOT2 protein and mRNA abundance are controlled, identifying acetylation- and m6A-based regulatory layers.

    Evidence HDAC6 K211 deacetylation with K211R mutagenesis and CHX/MG132 chase; HNRNPH1/METTL14/IGF2BP3 m6A stabilization and FTO demethylation with rescue assays

    PMID:38914215 PMID:39174882 PMID:39570559

    Open questions at the time
    • E3 ligase mediating FLOT2 proteasomal turnover not identified
    • Interplay between acetylation and m6A control untested
  10. 2025 High

    Demonstrated FLOT2 functions as an anti-degradation scaffold in vivo across organ systems and supports receptor-proximal enzyme signaling.

    Evidence Co-IP and conditional KO/OE mice showing synaptopodin protection from K48 ubiquitination in diabetic nephropathy; FLOT2-PLCγ2 Co-IP with CRISPR KO and OVX osteoporosis model; LAMP2-FLOT2 Co-IP and autophagic flux assays in cardiac endothelium

    PMID:40066518 PMID:40681143 PMID:40816424

    Open questions at the time
    • Whether a single raft-scaffolding mechanism underlies all partner stabilization events unproven
    • Direct enzymatic or adaptor activity of FLOT2 not established

Open questions

Synthesis pass · forward-looking unresolved questions
  • It remains unknown whether FLOT2's diverse partner-stabilizing and signaling activities derive from a single unifying biochemical mechanism of raft organization or from distinct context-specific interactions.
  • No structural model of FLOT2 raft assembly or partner binding
  • E3 ligases and full degradation machinery acting on FLOT2 and its clients undefined
  • Direct molecular activity (beyond scaffolding) not demonstrated

Mechanism profile

Synthesis pass · controlled-vocabulary classification · explore literature graph →
Molecular activity
GO:0060090 molecular adaptor activity 6 GO:0140313 molecular sequestering activity 3
Localization
GO:0005886 plasma membrane 3 GO:0005856 cytoskeleton 1
Pathway
R-HSA-162582 Signal Transduction 4 R-HSA-1643685 Disease 3 R-HSA-9612973 Autophagy 1
Complex memberships
podocin-nephrin slit diaphragm complex

Evidence

Reading pass · 17 per-paper findings extracted from the source corpus
Year Finding Method Journal Conf PMIDs
2022 Flot2 acts as a scaffolding protein that promotes cytoneme-based intercellular transport of Wnt3 in gastric cancer cells. Together with the Wnt co-receptor Ror2, Flot2 determines the number and length of Wnt3-carrying cytonemes. This mechanism is conserved: Flotillins are also necessary for Wnt8a cytonemes during zebrafish embryogenesis. Live imaging of cytonemes, genetic manipulation of Flot2 and Ror2, zebrafish embryogenesis model, functional proliferation/survival assays eLife High 36040316
2021 FLOT2 interacts with and stabilizes EphA2 protein in glioma cells; FLOT2 knockdown reduces EphA2 levels, suppresses Akt and NF-κB activities, and induces apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, and EMT inhibition. Restoration of EphA2 rescues the suppressive effects of FLOT2 knockdown, placing FLOT2 upstream of EphA2 in a pro-oncogenic signaling axis. Co-immunoprecipitation, siRNA knockdown, Western blot, IHC, functional rescue assays Biochemical and biophysical research communications Medium 33631676
2025 LAMP2 preferentially binds FLOT2 in cardiac endothelial cells following IL-4 exposure, and this LAMP2-FLOT2 interaction enhances autophagosome-lysosome fusion. Loss of FLOT2 reverses the LAMP2-mediated rescue of autophagic flux, leading to autophagosome accumulation. Co-immunoprecipitation, loss-of-function (FLOT2 knockdown), autophagic flux assays (including transmission electron microscopy and LC3/p62 markers), CLP mouse sepsis model Autophagy Medium 40066518
2025 Flot2 directly interacts with synaptopodin in podocytes and protects it from proteasomal degradation via inhibition of K48-linked polyubiquitination. Podocyte-specific Flot2 knockout worsened albuminuria and podocyte injury in diabetic mice, while podocyte-specific overexpression was protective. Co-immunoprecipitation, conditional knockout and overexpression mouse models, ubiquitination assays, Western blot Metabolism: clinical and experimental High 40681143
2023 Flot2 stabilizes the podocin-nephrin complex by recruiting podocin and nephrin into lipid rafts. Flot2 and podocin directly interact via their SPFH domains. Podocyte-specific Flot2 deletion worsened albuminuria and glomerular pathology in LPS/ADR-induced nephropathy, while podocyte-specific overexpression was protective. Flot2 was identified as a direct transcriptional target of KLF15. Co-immunoprecipitation, domain mapping (SPFH), conditional knockout and transgenic overexpression mouse models, sucrose density fractionation, ChIP/luciferase for KLF15 regulation International journal of biological sciences High 36632460
2024 HDAC6 deacetylates FLOT2 at lysine 211 (K211), inhibiting its proteasomal degradation. Acetylation-mimicking mutation (K211R) slows FLOT2 degradation and increases its tumorigenic activity. HDAC6 and FLOT2 interact (confirmed by Co-IP), and HDAC6 knockdown increases FLOT2 acetylation and reduces FLOT2 protein levels via the proteasome. Co-immunoprecipitation, site-directed mutagenesis (K211R), cycloheximide chase assay, proteasome inhibitor (MG132) treatment, HDAC inhibitor (TSA) treatment, Western blot Journal of Central South University. Medical sciences High 39174882
2024 HNRNPH1 stabilizes FLOT2 mRNA through an m6A-dependent mechanism: HNRNPH1 interacts with and protects METTL14 from STUB1-mediated degradation, leading to increased m6A modification of FLOT2 mRNA, which is then recognized by IGF2BP3 to further stabilize it. Restoration of METTL14 in HNRNPH1-depleted cells rescues FLOT2 expression and malignant phenotype, but not when FLOT2 is also knocked down. Co-immunoprecipitation, mRNA stability assays, m6A methylation analysis, rescue experiments with METTL14 and FLOT2, in vitro and in vivo functional assays Cellular oncology Medium 39570559
2024 FTO demethylates m6A modifications in FLOT2 mRNA, stabilizing it and upregulating FLOT2 protein expression, which subsequently activates the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in DLBCL. FTO overexpression promotes and FTO silencing suppresses DLBCL malignant phenotypes through FLOT2. m6A methylation assays, mRNA stability assays, overexpression/silencing vectors, Western blot, functional assays (viability, apoptosis, invasion), rescue experiments with FLOT2 Archives of biochemistry and biophysics Medium 38914215
2017 Flot2 promotes HCC tumor growth and metastasis by activating the Raf/MEK/ERK1/2 pathway, upregulating Twist, which drives cell cycle modulation and EMT induction. Forced overexpression of Flot2 promoted proliferation, migration, and invasion, while silencing inhibited these processes both in vitro and in vivo. Overexpression and siRNA knockdown, Western blot, in vitro functional assays, in vivo xenograft model, pathway analysis American journal of cancer research Medium 28560058
2019 During neural differentiation of P19C6 cells, Flot2 expression and localization to lipid rafts increases. Fyn kinase co-localizes with Flot2 in lipid rafts and partially colocalizes after neural differentiation, suggesting Fyn phosphorylates Flot2 in lipid rafts during neural differentiation. Sucrose density gradient fractionation, immunofluorescence co-localization, Western blot of detergent-resistant membrane fractions BMC molecular and cell biology Medium 31455216
2017 LXR agonist T0901317 decreases mRNA and protein expression of FLOT2 and its palmitoylating enzyme DHHC5 in MCF-7 breast cancer cells, and reduces Akt phosphorylation and its localization at the plasma membrane, indicating LXR-mediated transcriptional regulation of FLOT2 affects lipid raft integrity and downstream Akt signaling. LXR agonist treatment, RT-PCR, Western blot, Akt localization assay Anticancer research Low 28739689
2022 FLOT2 promotes NPC progression by stabilizing STAT3 protein, which then transcriptionally activates CD109 expression. CD109 upregulation suppresses the TGF-β/Smad pathway. Rescue experiments showed CD109 reverses functional changes induced by FLOT2 alteration in vitro and in vivo. Co-immunoprecipitation, immunofluorescence, ChIP, dual-luciferase assay, qRT-PCR, Western blot, in vitro and in vivo functional assays iScience Medium 38161417
2022 TBL1X interacts with TCF4 to trans-activate Flot2 expression. Flot2 in turn increases TBL1X expression by upregulating c-myc, a positive transcriptional regulator of TBL1X, forming a positive feedback loop that promotes NPC metastasis. Co-immunoprecipitation, luciferase reporter assay, qRT-PCR, Western blot, in vitro and in vivo functional assays International journal of biological sciences Medium 35173544
2023 Flot2 deficiency in B cells leads to elevated effector B cell (Beff) cytokines (IL-6, IL-1β, CXCL10) without affecting regulatory B cell (Breg) cytokines (IL-10, TGF-β), exacerbating sepsis-induced lung injury and reducing survival. Flot2 acts as a suppressor of Beff inflammatory responses. B cell-specific Flot2 knockout mice and chimeric mice, RNA-seq, ELISA, in vivo CLP sepsis model Immunology Medium 37688314
2025 FLOT2 interacts with PLCγ2 in osteoclast precursor cells; FLOT2 deficiency disrupts this interaction and inhibits osteoclastogenesis. Targeted ablation of Flot2 using CRISPR/Cas9 and siRNA suppressed osteoclastogenesis in vitro and prevented ovariectomy-induced osteoporosis in vivo without affecting physiological bone mass. CRISPR/Cas9 knockout, siRNA knockdown, Co-immunoprecipitation (FLOT2-PLCγ2), in vitro osteoclastogenesis assays, in vivo OVX mouse model Pharmacological research High 40816424
2015 miR-449a directly targets the 3'UTR of Flot2 (validated by luciferase reporter assay), reducing Flot2 expression. Flot2 is necessary for TGF-β-induced EMT in gastric cancer cells; its silencing reduces mesenchymal markers and increases E-cadherin, suppressing invasion. Luciferase reporter assay, qRT-PCR, Western blot, invasion assays Diagnostic pathology Medium 26576674
2023 Loss of Flot2 expression in deep cerebellar nuclei neurons of Npc1 knockout mice correlates with lipid raft disruption due to GM2 ganglioside sequestration. Treatment with miglustat (sphingolipid synthesis inhibitor) or N-acetyl-l-leucine restored Flot2 expression in Npc1-deficient mice. Npc1 knockout mouse model, immunostaining, single-nucleus RNA sequencing, pharmacological treatment Heliyon Low 37539272

Source papers

Stage 0 corpus · 32 papers · ranked by NIH iCite citations
Year Title Journal Citations PMID
2019 MicroRNA-351 eases insulin resistance and liver gluconeogenesis via the PI3K/AKT pathway by inhibiting FLOT2 in mice of gestational diabetes mellitus. Journal of cellular and molecular medicine 69 31287224
2016 MiR-485 inhibits metastasis and EMT of lung adenocarcinoma by targeting Flot2. Biochemical and biophysical research communications 48 27262438
2015 miR-449a targets Flot2 and inhibits gastric cancer invasion by inhibiting TGF-β-mediated EMT. Diagnostic pathology 39 26576674
2014 Identification of FLOT2 as a novel target for microRNA-34a in melanoma. Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology 39 25403318
2022 Neural stem cell‑derived exosomes transfer miR‑124‑3p into cells to inhibit glioma growth by targeting FLOT2. International journal of oncology 35 35929514
2017 Flot2 promotes tumor growth and metastasis through modulating cell cycle and inducing epithelial-mesenchymal transition of hepatocellular carcinoma. American journal of cancer research 29 28560058
2014 SiRNA-mediated flotillin-2 (Flot2) downregulation inhibits cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in gastric carcinoma cells. Oncology research 26 24854103
2020 Circ-FOXM1 contributes to cell proliferation, invasion, and glycolysis and represses apoptosis in melanoma by regulating miR-143-3p/FLOT2 axis. World journal of surgical oncology 24 32183822
2020 Long non-coding RNA MIR4435-2HG recruits miR-802 from FLOT2 to promote melanoma progression. European review for medical and pharmacological sciences 22 32196611
2019 The study of mechanism of miR-34c-5p targeting FLOT2 to regulate proliferation, migration and invasion of osteosarcoma cells. Artificial cells, nanomedicine, and biotechnology 19 31446795
2022 TBL1X and Flot2 form a positive feedback loop to promote metastasis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. International journal of biological sciences 17 35173544
2021 FLOT2 upregulation promotes growth and invasion by interacting and stabilizing EphA2 in gliomas. Biochemical and biophysical research communications 17 33631676
2017 miR-133 involves in lung adenocarcinoma cell metastasis by targeting FLOT2. Artificial cells, nanomedicine, and biotechnology 17 28503944
2017 LXR Activation Down-regulates Lipid Raft Markers FLOT2 and DHHC5 in MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cells. Anticancer research 15 28739689
2022 The scaffolding protein flot2 promotes cytoneme-based transport of wnt3 in gastric cancer. eLife 13 36040316
2025 LAMP2-FLOT2 interaction enhances autophagosome-lysosome fusion to protect the septic heart in response to ILC2. Autophagy 12 40066518
2024 Fat mass and obesity-associated protein (FTO)-induced upregulation of flotillin-2 (FLOT2) contributes to cancer aggressiveness in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) via activating the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signal pathway. Archives of biochemistry and biophysics 12 38914215
2020 Circ_001569 regulates FLOT2 expression to promote the proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT of osteosarcoma cells through sponging miR-185-5p. Open life sciences 12 33817236
2019 The Flot2 component of the lipid raft changes localization during neural differentiation of P19C6 cells. BMC molecular and cell biology 10 31455216
2023 Flot2 acts as a novel mediator of podocyte injury in proteinuric kidney disease. International journal of biological sciences 6 36632460
2023 FLOT2 promotes nasopharyngeal carcinoma progression through suppression of TGF-β pathway via facilitating CD109 expression. iScience 6 38161417
2024 Analysis and Investigation of Bioinformatics and Epigenetics Reveal the Underlying Mechanisms by which FLOT2 Modulates the Progression of Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma. Discovery medicine 5 38531803
2023 Loss of Flot2 expression in deep cerebellar nuclei neurons of mice with Niemann-Pick disease type C. Heliyon 4 37539272
2023 Knockdown of PAF1 reduces cervical cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion via retarding FLOT2-mediated MEK/ERK1/2 pathway. Cell adhesion & migration 4 37754347
2022 FLOT2 Promotes the Proliferation and Epithelial-mesenchymal Transition of Cervical Cancer by Activating the MEK/ERK1/2 Pathway. Balkan medical journal 4 35872627
2016 Establishment and characterization of a novel uterine carcinosarcoma cell line, TU-ECS-1, with mutations of TP53 and KRAS. Human cell 4 27889902
2025 Flot2 protects against podocyte injury by maintaining the stability of synaptopodin in diabetic nephropathy. Metabolism: clinical and experimental 3 40681143
2024 HNRNPH1 stabilizes FLOT2 mRNA in a non-canonical m6A-dependent manner to promote malignant progression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Cellular oncology (Dordrecht, Netherlands) 3 39570559
2025 Osteoclast precursor cell-derived Flot2 is a novel therapeutic target for bone loss diseases. Pharmacological research 1 40816424
2024 HDAC6-mediated deacetylation of FLOT2 maintains stability and tumorigenic function of FLOT2 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Zhong nan da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Central South University. Medical sciences 1 39174882
2023 Flot2 deficiency facilitates B cell-mediated inflammatory responses and endotoxic shock. Immunology 1 37688314
2016 Cloning and Expression Analysis of One Gamma-Glutamylcysteine Synthetase Gene (Hbγ-ECS1) in Latex Production in Hevea brasiliensis. BioMed research international 1 27419133

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