Transcriptomic discovery of a theranostic signature (SERPINE1/MMP3/COL1A1/SPP1) for head and neck squamous cell carcinomas and identification of antrocinol as a candidate drug

Up-regulation of extracellular-matrix and inflammation related genes in oral squamous cell carcinoma

OBJECTIVE

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most prevalent malignancy with late-presentation, site-specific heterogeneity, and high-propensity for recurrence/metastasis that has shown rise in mortality. Lately, research emphasize on dynamic interactions between tumor-cells and extracellular-matrix components within tumor-microenvironment that promote tissue integrity loss and carcinogenesis. Therefore, OSCC clinical-management is still challenging.

DESIGN

Present study validated clinical utility of a 13 gene-panel in two chief sub-sites of OSCC: Buccal mucosa squamous cell carcinoma (BMSCC) (N = 50) and Tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC) (N = 52) using qRT-PCR. Principal component analysis and binary logistic regression analysis were applied to acquire definite multi gene models. Protein expression analysis was employed using the Human Protein Atlas, UALCAN and TIMER 2.0 databases to explore potential correlation between immune cells and gene-panels.

RESULTS

Significant up-regulation of CXCL8, CXCL10, FN1, GBP1, IFIT3, ISG15, MMP1, MMP3, MMP10, PLAU, SERPINE1 and SPP1 except OASL was observed in OSCC tissue in comparison of absolute normal controls. Although, this gene-panel could potentially discriminate OSCC tissues from absolute normal controls as solitarily diagnostic and/or predictive biomarkers, models generated also showed substantial discriminating efficacy. Eight-genes were found to be significantly associated with poor-prognosis on clinico-pathological association. Protein-expression confirmed overexpression of gene-panel and added advantage of being secretory-protein. Importantly, up-regulated genes in our study showed significant relation with immune-cells infiltration suggesting their contribution in immune-escape.

CONCLUSION

Thus, we propose that the 13 gene-panel could pave the way to effective and personalized clinical-management of OSCC in terms of diagnostic and prognostic measures and thereby as therapeutic targets.

Multi-Omics Reveals the Role of Osteopontin/Secreted Phosphoprotein 1 in Regulating Ovarian Aging

Secreted phosphoprotein 1 (SPP1), also known as osteopontin (OPN), is located on chromosome 4q22.1. This multifunctional secreted acidic glycoprotein is expressed intracellularly and extracellularly in various tissues, where it interacts with regulatory proteins and pro-inflammatory immune chemokines, contributing to the pathogenesis of multiple diseases. Nevertheless, the intricate genetic connections between SPP1 and ovarian aging remain largely unexplored. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by delving into ovarian aging and its associations with SPP1 using multi-omics data analysis. Our findings indicate that SPP1 is a potential gene related to ovarian aging. To comprehend the role of SPP1, we conducted spatial transcriptomic analyses on young and aged female mouse ovaries, revealing a significant decline in SPP1 expression in the aging group compared to the young group. Similarly, a significantly low level of SPP1 was found in the 73-year-old sample. Additionally, in-depth single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis identified associations between SPP1 and ITGAV, ITGB1, CD44, MMP3, and FN1. Notably, co-expression analysis highlighted a strong correlation between SPP1 and ITGB1. In summary, this study pioneers the identification of SPP1 as a gene implicated in ovarian aging. Further research into the role of SPP1 has the potential to advance precision medicine and improve treatment strategies for ovarian aging-related conditions.