- Chu, Li-Kai;
- Cao, Xu;
- Wan, Lin;
- Diao, Qiang;
- Zhu, Yu;
- Kan, Yu;
- Ye, Li-Li;
- Mao, Yi-Ming;
- Dong, Xing-Qiang;
- Xiong, Qian-Wei;
- Fu, Ming-Cui;
- Zhang, Ting;
- Zhou, Hui-Ting;
- Cai, Shi-Zhong;
- Ma, Zhou-Rui;
- Hsu, Ssu-Wei;
- Wu, Reen;
- Yan, Xiang-Ming;
- Liu, Jun;
- Chen, Ching-Hsien
Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent programmed cell death associated with severe kidney diseases, linked to decreased glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4). However, the spatial distribution of renal GPX4-mediated ferroptosis and the molecular events causing GPX4 reduction during ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) remain largely unknown. Using spatial transcriptomics, we identify that GPX4 is situated at the interface of the inner cortex and outer medulla, a hyperactive ferroptosis site post-I/R injury. We further discover OTU deubiquitinase 5 (OTUD5) as a GPX4-binding protein that confers ferroptosis resistance by stabilizing GPX4. During I/R, ferroptosis is induced by mTORC1-mediated autophagy, causing OTUD5 degradation and subsequent GPX4 decay. Functionally, OTUD5 deletion intensifies renal tubular cell ferroptosis and exacerbates acute kidney injury, while AAV-mediated OTUD5 delivery mitigates ferroptosis and promotes renal function recovery from I/R injury. Overall, this study highlights a new autophagy-dependent ferroptosis module: hypoxia/ischemia-induced OTUD5 autophagy triggers GPX4 degradation, offering a potential therapeutic avenue for I/R-related kidney diseases.