The role of glycoproteins in autophagy and apoptosis in colorectal cancer: A scoping review.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most prevalent and deadliest cancers worldwide. Despite current treatments, therapeutic resistance remains a paramount challenge. Glycoproteins play essential roles in cellular processes and have been linked to drug resistance in CRC. This scoping review aims to synthesise the existing evidence on the role of glycoproteins in regulating apoptosis and autophagy in colorectal cancer. A comprehensive search was conducted using the keywords ("Autophagy") AND ("Apoptosis ") AND ("glycoprotein" OR "glycosylated proteins") AND ("colorectal cancer" OR "colon cancer" OR "CRC") across PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases on 1 May 2025 without restriction. A total of nine English-language original articles were included. The outcomes show that glycoproteins such as P-gp and MRP-1 are often overexpressed in CRC cells. Inhibition of these glycoproteins significantly reduces their expression and the proliferation of CRC cells, while also enhancing cell death via apoptosis and autophagy. Hence, regulating glycoproteins in CRC provides a novel strategy to inhibit cancer progression, offering a potential avenue to overcoming therapy resistance in CRC. However, further in vivo research is necessary to elucidate the mechanism of action of glycoproteins.