Dual Roles of NIX/BNIP3L in Tumors: Friend or Foe

Cancer is one of the leading causes of disease-related death worldwide, and targeting key regulatory genes to induce programmed cell death in tumor cells has emerged as a crucial therapeutic strategy, following surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. As a mitochondrial outer membrane protein, NIX/BNIP3L can both mediate apoptosis to inhibit tumor cell growth and promote tumor cell survival by clearing intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) through mitophagy. Therefore, we summarize a brief overview of the structure and function of NIX/BNIP3L, as well as the mechanisms of NIX/BNIP3L generation and degradation, the role of NIX/BNIP3L in mediating apoptosis and mitophagy and to advance the understanding of the roles of NIX/BNIP3L in glioblastoma, lung cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer and hematologic neoplasms, aiming to enhance treatment precision and improve patient outcomes.