PSPH Promotes Hepatocellular Carcinoma Progression by Upregulating HIF-1α and Is Regulated by LncRNA GSEC/miR-101-3p

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) lacks effective early diagnostic markers and is heavily driven by angiogenesis and hypoxia. Emerging evidence indicates that metabolic enzymes and noncoding RNAs coordinate these processes. Here, we reveal that phosphoserine phosphatase (PSPH), a serine biosynthesis enzyme, is significantly upregulated in HCC, correlating with angiogenic markers and poor prognosis. Clinical data and functional assays demonstrated that miR-101-3p directly targets the PSPH 3′ UTR to suppress its expression, while lncRNA GSEC acts as a competing endogenous RNA to sponge miR-101-3p. In vitro, GSEC knockdown or miR-101-3p overexpression decreased PSPH and HIF1α levels, strongly inhibiting HCC angiogenesis, migration, invasion, and proliferation. Crucially, these anti-tumor effects were reversed by restoring PSPH. In vivo, modulating the GSEC/PSPH axis significantly altered xenograft tumor growth and vascularization. Conclusively, the GSEC/miR-101-3p/PSPH regulatory axis drives HIF1α-dependent angiogenesis and HCC progression, highlighting PSPH as a promising diagnostic biomarker and therapeutic target.