Identification and Validation of lncRNA-SNHG17 in Lung Adenocarcinoma: A Novel Prognostic and Diagnostic Indicator

Exploring the interplay between methylation patterns and non-coding RNAs in non-small cell lung cancer: Implications for pathogenesis and therapeutic targets

Lung cancer is a global public health issue, with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounting for 80-85 % of cases. With over two million new diagnoses annually, understanding the complex evolution of this disease is crucial. The development of lung cancer involves a complex interplay of genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors, leading the key oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes to disorder, and activating the cancer related signaling pathway. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), including microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNA (lncRNAs), and circular RNA (circRNAs) are unique RNA transcripts with diverse biological functions. These ncRNAs are generated through genome transcription and play essential roles in cellular processes. Epigenetic modifications such as DNA methylation, N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification, and histone methylation have gained significant attention in NSCLC research. The complexity of the interactions among these methylation modifications and ncRNAs contribute to the precise regulation of NSCLC development. This review comprehensively summarizes the associations between ncRNAs and different methylation modifications and discusses their effects on NSCLC. By elucidating these relationships, we aim to advance our understanding of NSCLC pathogenesis and identify potential therapeutic targets for this devastating disease.

Correlation of tumor mutational burden with prognosis and immune infiltration in lung adenocarcinoma

Background

Tumor mutational burden (TMB) plays an important role in the evaluation of immunotherapy efficacy in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD).

Objective

To improve the clinical management of LUAD by investigating the prognostic value of TMB and the relationship between TMB and immune infiltration.

Methods

TMB scores were calculated from the mutation data of 587 LUAD samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), and patients were divided into low-TMB and high-TMB groups based on the quartiles of the TMB score. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs), immune cell infiltration and survival analysis were compared between the low-TMB and high-TMB groups. We queried the expression of genes in lung cancer tissues through the GEPIA online database and performed experimental validation of the function of aberrant genes expressed in lung cancer tissues.

Results

We obtained sample information from TCGA for 587 LUAD patients, and the results of survival analysis for the high- and low- TMB groups suggested that patients in the high-TMB group had lower survival rates than those in the low-TMB group. A total of 756 DEGs were identified in the study, and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) showed that DEGs in the low-TMB group were enriched in immune-related pathways. Among the differentially expressed genes obtained, 15 immune-related key genes were screened with the help of ImmPort database, including 5 prognosis-related genes (CD274, PDCD1, CTLA4, LAG3, TIGIT). No difference in the expression of PDCD1, CTLA4, LAG3, TIGIT in lung cancer tissues and differential expression of CD274 in lung cancer tissues.

Conclusions

The survival rate of LUAD patients with low TMB was better than that of LUAD patients with high TMB. CD274 expression was down regulated in human LUAD cell lines H1299, PC-9, A549 and SPC-A1, which inhibited malignant progression of A549 cells.

ZNF521 Is Correlated with Tumor Immune Cell Infiltration and Act as a Valuable Prognostic Biomarker in Gastric Cancer

Aim

To explore the correlations between the expression of zinc finger protein 521 (ZNF521) with immune invasion and prognosis of gastric cancer.

Methods

Expression of ZNF521 was examined by immunohistochemistry in gastric cancer cases. Kaplan–Meier plotter was used to determine the relationships between ZNF521 and prognosis. TIMER and GEPIA were used to analyze the correlation between ZNF521 expression and gene markers of immune cell infiltration.

Results

The expression of ZNF521 was up-regulated in gastric cancer samples. Kaplan–Meier analysis indicated that higher expression of ZNF521 was associated with poor prognosis. The expression of ZNF521 was correlated with infiltrating levels of CD4+ T and CD8+ T cells, macrophages, neutrophils, and dendritic cells in gastric cancer, which also correlated with diverse immune marker sets.

Conclusions

ZNF521 is correlated significantly with immune cell infiltration and is a valuable biomarker for prognosis in gastric cancer.