Comprehensive Analysis of mRNA Expression Profiles in Head and Neck Cancer by Using Robust Rank Aggregation and Weighted Gene Coexpression Network Analysis

ITM2A inhibits the progression of bladder cancer by downregulating the phosphorylation of STAT3

Bladder cancer stands as one of the prevalent malignancies in urological clinics, highlighting the pressing need to uncover prognostic or therapeutic avenues. ITM2A, a transmembrane protein, has been identified as a suppressor in tumor progression recently. Our study underscored a significant correlation between low ITM2A expression in bladder cancer tissues and high tumor grade, AJCC stage, and poor overall survival time. Additionally, our findings demonstrated that reinstating ITM2A expression impeded cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, while conversely, its suppression enhanced these malignant behaviors. Furthermore, we elucidated that ITM2A could suppress malignant phenotypes of bladder cancer cells via inhibiting activation of the STAT3 induced by IL-6. In conclusion, our research unveiled the mechanistic role of ITM2A in inhibiting tumor progression, shedding light on its potential as a prognostic predictor and therapeutic target in bladder cancer management.

Comprehensive Analysis Identifies Hyaluronan Mediated Motility Receptor and Cell Division Cycle 25C as Potential Prognostic Biomarkers in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

INTRODUCTION

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the sixth most common cancer worldwide, but its pathogenic mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to identify the potential biomarkers underlying the diagnosis and treatment of HNSCC.

METHODS

Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) followed by pathway enrichment analysis, analysis of infiltrating immune cells, survival analysis, and methylation analysis were applied to identify the potential hub genes underlying the prognosis of HNSCC. The expression of hub genes was validated by immunofluorescence staining.

RESULTS

A total of 10,274 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Through WGCNA, the yellow module (R2 = 0.33, P = 2e-14) was confirmed to be the most significantly associated with the histological grade of HNSCC, and the "Cell Cycle" proved to be the most enriched signaling pathway. Based on the results of survival analysis and immune cell infiltration, 10 hub genes (HMMR, CENPK, AURKA, CDC25C, FEN1, CKS1B, MAJIN, PCLAF, SPC25, and STAG3) were identified. Eight of these (excluding MAJIN and STAG3) were confirmed by performing survival analysis using another dataset (GSE41613). Further, we identified 4 methylation loci in 3 hub genes (cg15122828 and cg20554926 in HMMR, cg12519992 in CDC25C, and cg2655739 in KIAA0101/PCLAF) as being significantly related to survival. Finally, we demonstrated the high mRNA and protein expression of HMMR and CDC25C in HNSCC patients.

CONCLUSION

Two real hub genes (HMMR and CDC25C) and 3 methylation loci were identified that could potentially serve as prognostic and therapeutic targets for HNSCC, which is significant for studying the pathological mechanisms underlying HNSCC and for developing novel therapies for this disease.

Meta-analysis of the effect of PGM on survival prognosis of tumor patients

Objective

A systematic evaluation of the impact of phosphoglucose translocase PGM on the survival prognosis of tumor patients was conducted to understand its impact on tumors so as to improve the quality of survival and to find effective therapeutic targets for tumor patients.

Methods

The following were searched in the databases China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang, Wipu, PubMed, EMBASE, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library: "PGM1", "PGM2", "PGM3", "PGM4", and "PGM5" as Chinese keywords and "PGM1", "PGM2", "PGM3", "PGM4", "PGM5", "PGM1 cancer", "PGM2 cancer", "PGM3 cancer", "PGM4 cancer", "PGM5 cancer", and "phosphoglucomutase". Relevant studies published from the database establishment to April 2022 were collected. Studies that met the inclusion criteria were extracted and evaluated for quality with reference to the Cochrane 5.1.0 systematic evaluation method, and quality assessment was performed using RevMan 5.3 software.

Results

The final results of nine articles and 10 studies with a total of 3,806 patients were included, including 272 patients in the PGM1 group, 541 patients in the PGM2 group, 1,775 patients in the PGM3 group, and 1,585 patients in the PGM5 group. Results of the meta-analysis: after determining the results of the nine articles, it was found that the difference was statistically significant with a p-value <0.05 (hazard ratio (HR) = 0.89, 95% CI 0.69-1.09, p = 0.000). To find the sources of heterogeneity, the remaining eight papers were tested after removing the highly sensitive literature, and the results showed I² = 26.5%, p < 0.001, a statistically significant difference. The HR for high expression of PGM1 and PGM2 and PGM5 was <1, while the HR for high expression of PGM3 was >1.

Conclusion

Although PGM1, PGM2, PGM3, and PGM5 are enzymes of the same family, their effects on tumors are different. High expression of PGM1, PGM2, and PGM5 can effectively prolong the overall survival of patients. In contrast, high expression of PGM3 reduced the overall survival of patients. This study of PGM family enzymes can assist in subsequent tumor diagnosis, treatment, and prognostic assessment.

MFAP4-Mediated Effects in Elastic Fiber Homeostasis, Integrin Signaling and Cancer, and Its Role in Teleost Fish

Microfibrillar-associated protein 4 (MFAP4) is an extracellular matrix (ECM) protein belonging to the fibrinogen-related domain superfamily. MFAP4 is highly expressed in elastin-rich tissues such as lung, blood vessels and skin. MFAP4 is involved in organization of the ECM, regulating proper elastic fiber assembly. On the other hand, during pathology MFAP4 actively contributes to disease development and progression due to its interactions with RGD-dependent integrin receptors. Both tissue expression and circulating MFAP4 levels are associated with various disorders, including liver fibrosis and cancer. In other experimental models, such as teleost fish, MFAP4 appears to participate in host defense as a macrophage-specific innate immune molecule. The aim of this review is to summarize the accumulating evidence that indicates the importance of MFAP4 in homeostasis as well as pathological conditions, discuss its known biological functions with special focus on elastic fiber assembly, integrin signaling and cancer, as well as describe the reported functions of non-mammalian MFAP4 in fish. Overall, our work provides a comprehensive overview on the role of MFAP4 in health and disease.

A novel immune-related RNA-binding proteins signature to predict survival and therapeutic responses in prostate cancer

BACKGROUND

The present study aims to identify immune-related RBPs signature to predict prognosis and therapy response in prostate cancer.

METHODS

Differentially expressed RBPs were compared and visualized using R packages. Immune-related RBPs were selected by Pearson correlation analysis. The prognostic immune-related RBPs were identified using the Kaplan-Meier method and LASSO regression. A multivariable Cox regression model was used to construct immune-related RBPs signature.

RESULTS

We constructed a prognostic predictive risk model of prostate cancer containing ten immune-related RBP genes. We found that high-risk prostate cancer patients presented poorer prognosis, higher tumor immune cell infiltration, higher rates of genomic alterations, and were more sensitive to targeted and immunotherapy than the low-risk group.

CONCLUSIONS

The immune-related RBPs' signature is an independent prognostic marker that could help screen patients with advanced prostate cancer who are better suited for targeted and immunotherapy.