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Li H, Qian F, Bao S. Identification and functional analysis of lactic acid metabolism-related differentially expressed genes in hepatocellular carcinoma. Front Genet 2024; 15:1390882. [PMID: 38689649 PMCID: PMC11058226 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1390882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2024] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignant tumor with high morbidity and mortality rate that seriously threatens human health. We aimed to investigate the expression, prognostic value, and immune cell infiltration of lactic acid metabolism-related genes (LAMRGs) in HCC using bioinformatics. Methods: The HCC database (The Cancer Genome Atlas-Liver Hepatocellular Carcinoma) was downloaded from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between normal and tumor groups were identified. The LAMRGs were obtained from literature and GeneCards and MSigDB databases. Lactic acid metabolism-related differentially expressed genes (LAMRDEGs) in HCC were screened from the DEGs and LAMRGs. Functional enrichment analyses of the screened LAMRDEGs were further conducted using Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis, and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA). The genes were used in multivariate Cox regression and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) analyses to construct a prognostic model. Then, a protein-protein interaction network was constructed using STRING and CTD databases. Furthermore, the CIBERSORTx online database was used to assess the relationship between immune cell infiltration and hub genes. Results: Twenty-eight lactic acid metabolism-related differentially expressed genes (LAMRDEGs) were identified. The GO and KEGG analyses showed that the LAMRDEGs were related to the prognosis of HCC. The GSEA indicated that the LAMRDEGs were significantly enriched in tumor related pathways. In the multivariate Cox regression analysis, 14 key genes (E2F1, SERPINE1, GYS2, SPP1, PCK1, CCNB1, CYP2C9, IGFBP3, KDM8, RCAN1, ALPL, FBP1, NQO1, and LCAT) were found to be independent prognostic factors of HCC. Finally, the LASSO and Cox regression analyses showed that six key genes (SERPINE1, SPP1, CCNB1, CYP2C9, NQO1, and LCAT) were associated with HCC prognosis. Moreover, the correlation analyses revealed that the expression of the six key genes were associated with immune infiltrates of HCC. Conclusion: The LAMRDEGs can predict the prognosis and may be associated with immune cells infiltration in patients with HCC. These genes might be the promising biomarkers for the prognosis and treatment of HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haiyan Li
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Huzhou Maternity and Child HealthCare Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Fuchu Qian
- Department of Precision Medicine, Affiliated Central Hospital Huzhou University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Huzhou Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine Research and Translation for Infectious Diseases, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Shengjie Bao
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Huzhou University, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China
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Tang J, Peng X, Xiao D, Liu S, Tao Y, Shu L. Disulfidptosis-related signature predicts prognosis and characterizes the immune microenvironment in hepatocellular carcinoma. Cancer Cell Int 2024; 24:19. [PMID: 38195525 PMCID: PMC10775580 DOI: 10.1186/s12935-023-03188-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Disulfidptosis is a type of programmed cell death caused by excessive cysteine-induced disulfide bond denaturation leading to actin collapse. Liver cancer has a poor prognosis and requires more effective intervention strategies. Currently, the prognostic and therapeutic value of disulfidptosis in liver cancer is not clear. METHODS We investigated the features of 16 disulfidptosis-related genes (DRGs) of HCC patients in the TCGA and classified the patients into two disulfidptosis pattern clusters by consensus clustering analysis. Then, we constructed a prognostic model using LASSO Cox regression. Next, the microenvironment and drug sensitivity were evaluated. Finally, we used qPCR and functional analysis to verify the reliability of hub DRGs. RESULTS Most of the DRGs showed significantly higher expression in cancer tissues than in adjacent tissues. Our prognostic model, the DRG score, can well predict the survival of HCC patients. There were significant differences in survival, features of the microenvironment, effects of immunotherapy, and drug sensitivity between the high- and low-DRG score groups. Ultimately, we demonstrated that a few hub DRGs have differential mRNA expression between liver cancer cells and normal cells and that the protective gene LCAT can inhibit liver cancer metastasis in vitro. CONCLUSION We established a novel risk model based on DRG scores to predict HCC patient prognosis, drug sensitivity and immunotherapy efficacy, which provides new insight into the relationship between disulfidptosis and HCC and provides valuable assistance for the personalized treatment of HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Tang
- Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion (Ministry of Education), NHC Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis (Central South University), Cancer Research Institute and School of Basic Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Cancer Metabolism, Hunan Cancer Hospital and The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China
| | - Xintong Peng
- Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion (Ministry of Education), NHC Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis (Central South University), Cancer Research Institute and School of Basic Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Cancer Metabolism, Hunan Cancer Hospital and The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China
| | - Desheng Xiao
- Department of Pathology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Shuang Liu
- Department of Oncology, Institute of Medical Sciences, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Yongguang Tao
- Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion (Ministry of Education), NHC Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis (Central South University), Cancer Research Institute and School of Basic Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China.
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Cancer Metabolism, Hunan Cancer Hospital and The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China.
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Hunan Key Laboratory of Early Diagnosis and Precision Therapy in Lung Cancer, Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.
- Department of Pathology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China.
| | - Long Shu
- Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion (Ministry of Education), NHC Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis (Central South University), Cancer Research Institute and School of Basic Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China.
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Cancer Metabolism, Hunan Cancer Hospital and The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China.
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Sanchez-Moral L, Paul T, Martori C, Font-Díaz J, Sanjurjo L, Aran G, Téllez É, Blanco J, Carrillo J, Ito M, Tuttolomondo M, Ditzel HJ, Fumagalli C, Tapia G, Sidorova J, Masnou H, Fernández-Sanmartín MA, Lozano JJ, Vilaplana C, Rodriguez-Cortés A, Armengol C, Valledor AF, Kremer L, Sarrias MR. Macrophage CD5L is a target for cancer immunotherapy. EBioMedicine 2023; 91:104555. [PMID: 37054630 PMCID: PMC10139961 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 03/22/2023] [Accepted: 03/23/2023] [Indexed: 04/15/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Reprogramming of immunosuppressive tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) presents an attractive therapeutic strategy in cancer. The aim of this study was to explore the role of macrophage CD5L protein in TAM activity and assess its potential as a therapeutic target. METHODS Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against recombinant CD5L were raised by subcutaneous immunization of BALB/c mice. Peripheral blood monocytes were isolated from healthy donors and stimulated with IFN/LPS, IL4, IL10, and conditioned medium (CM) from different cancer cell lines in the presence of anti-CD5L mAb or controls. Subsequently, phenotypic markers, including CD5L, were quantified by flow cytometry, IF and RT-qPCR. Macrophage CD5L protein expression was studied in 55 human papillary lung adenocarcinoma (PAC) samples by IHC and IF. Anti-CD5L mAb and isotype control were administered intraperitoneally into a syngeneic Lewis Lung Carcinoma mouse model and tumor growth was measured. Tumor microenvironment (TME) changes were determined by flow cytometry, IHC, IF, Luminex, RNAseq and RT-qPCR. FINDINGS Cancer cell lines CM induced an immunosuppressive phenotype (increase in CD163, CD206, MERTK, VEGF and CD5L) in cultured macrophages. Accordingly, high TAM expression of CD5L in PAC was associated with poor patient outcome (Log-rank (Mantel-Cox) test p = 0.02). We raised a new anti-CD5L mAb that blocked the immunosuppressive phenotype of macrophages in vitro. Its administration in vivo inhibited tumor progression of lung cancer by altering the intratumoral myeloid cell population profile and CD4+ T-cell exhaustion phenotype, thereby significantly modifying the TME and increasing the inflammatory milieu. INTERPRETATION CD5L protein plays a key function in modulating the activity of macrophages and their interactions within the TME, which supports its role as a therapeutic target in cancer immunotherapy. FUNDING For a full list of funding bodies, please see the Acknowledgements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lidia Sanchez-Moral
- Innate Immunity Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Tony Paul
- Innate Immunity Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Clara Martori
- Innate Immunity Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain; Departament de Farmacologia, Terapèutica i Toxicologia, Facultat de Veterinària, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
| | - Joan Font-Díaz
- Department of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, School of Biology, University of Barcelona and Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), 08028 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Lucía Sanjurjo
- Innate Immunity Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Gemma Aran
- Innate Immunity Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Érica Téllez
- Innate Immunity Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Julià Blanco
- Virology and Cellular Immunology (VIC), IrsiCaixa, 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Jorge Carrillo
- Virology and Cellular Immunology (VIC), IrsiCaixa, 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Masaoki Ito
- Department of Surgical Oncology, Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University, 739-8527 Hiroshima, Japan
| | - Martina Tuttolomondo
- Department of Cancer and Inflammation Research, Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Southern Denmark, 5000 Odense, Denmark
| | - Henrik J Ditzel
- Department of Cancer and Inflammation Research, Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Southern Denmark, 5000 Odense, Denmark; Department of Oncology, Odense University Hospital, 5220 Odense, Denmark
| | - Caterina Fumagalli
- Servicio de Anatomía Patológica, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, 08025, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Gustavo Tapia
- Pathology Department, Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital (HUGTiP), 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Julia Sidorova
- Bioinformatics Platform, CIBERehd, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Helena Masnou
- Gastroenterology Department, Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital (HUGTiP), 08916 Badalona, Spain; Network for Biomedical Research in Hepatic and Digestive Diseases (CIBERehd), 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | | | | | - Cristina Vilaplana
- Experimental Tuberculosis Unit, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain; Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES), 28029 Madrid, Spain; Microbiology Department, Laboratori Clínic Metropolitana Nord, Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital, 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Alhelí Rodriguez-Cortés
- Departament de Farmacologia, Terapèutica i Toxicologia, Facultat de Veterinària, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
| | - Carolina Armengol
- Network for Biomedical Research in Hepatic and Digestive Diseases (CIBERehd), 28029 Madrid, Spain; Childhood Liver Oncology Group, Program of Predictive and Personalized Medicine of Cancer (PMPCC), IGTP, 08916 Badalona, Spain
| | - Annabel F Valledor
- Department of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, School of Biology, University of Barcelona and Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), 08028 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Leonor Kremer
- Protein Tools Unit and Department of Immunology and Oncology, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología (CNB-CSIC), 28049 Madrid, Spain
| | - Maria-Rosa Sarrias
- Innate Immunity Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain; Network for Biomedical Research in Hepatic and Digestive Diseases (CIBERehd), 28029 Madrid, Spain.
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