We use cookies to improve your experience. By continuing to browse this site, you accept our cookie policy.×
Skip main navigation
Aging Health
Bioelectronics in Medicine
Biomarkers in Medicine
Breast Cancer Management
CNS Oncology
Colorectal Cancer
Concussion
Epigenomics
Future Cardiology
Future Microbiology
Future Neurology
Future Oncology
Future Rare Diseases
Future Virology
Hepatic Oncology
HIV Therapy
Immunotherapy
International Journal of Endocrine Oncology
International Journal of Hematologic Oncology
Journal of 3D Printing in Medicine
Journal of Comparative Effectiveness Research
Lung Cancer Management
Melanoma Management
Nanomedicine
Neurodegenerative Disease Management
Pain Management
Pediatric Health
Personalized Medicine
Pharmacogenomics
Regenerative Medicine

Development and validation of a m6A-related gene signature for predicting the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma

    Weihao Kong‡

    Department of Emergency Surgery, Department of Emergency Medicine, The First affiliated hospital of Anhui Medical University, Heifei 230022, China

    ‡Authors contributed equally

    Search for more papers by this author

    ,
    Xutong Li‡

    Department of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230022, China

    ‡Authors contributed equally

    Search for more papers by this author

    ,
    Honghai Xu

    Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230022, China

    &
    Yufeng Gao

    *Author for correspondence: Tel.: +86 139 56 93 8032;

    E-mail Address: gaoyufeng121212@163.com

    Department of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230022, China

    Published Online:https://doi.org/10.2217/bmm-2020-0178

    Background: This study aimed to investigate the prognostic role of m6A methylation regulators in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Materials & methods: Gene expression matrices were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), International Cancer Genome Consortium, and Gene Expression Omnibus databases. Univariate and multivariate regression analysis were utilized to determine the m6A risk genes. Results: Two m6A-related risk genes (YTHDF1, YTHDF2) were identified in the TCGA HCC cohort. The m6A-correlated risk score is an independent risk factor for the overall survival of the TCGA HCC cohort. Finally, we verified the reliability of our results using three external datasets. Conclusion: The m6A-correlated gene signature has prognostic value in HCC patients and thus provides guidance for the treatment of HCC.

    Reference

    • 1. Bellissimo F, Pinzone MR, Cacopardo B, Nunnari G. Diagnostic and therapeutic management of hepatocellular carcinoma. World J. Gastroenterol. 21(42), 12003–12021 (2015).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 2. Umeda S, Kanda M. Recent advances in molecular biomarkers for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma Expert Rev Mol Diagn 19(8), 725–738 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 3. Bangaru S, Marrero JA, Singal AG. Review article: new therapeutic interventions for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 51(1), 78–89 (2020).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 4. Li Y, Xiao J, Bai J et al. Molecular characterization and clinical relevance of m(6)A regulators across 33 cancer types. Mol. Cancer 18(1), 137 (2019).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 5. He L, Li H, Wu A, Peng Y, Shu G, Yin G. Functions of N6-methyladenosine and its role in cancer. Obes. Rev. 18(1), 176 (2019).Google Scholar
    • 6. Livneh I, Moshitch-Moshkovitz S, Amariglio N, Rechavi G, Dominissini D. The m(6)A epitranscriptome: transcriptome plasticity in brain development and function. Nat Rev Neurosci 21(1), 36–51 (2020).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 7. Wu J. Emerging role of m(6) A RNA methylation in nutritional physiology and metabolism. Nat. Rev. Neurosci. 21(1), e12942 (2020).CASGoogle Scholar
    • 8. Zhou Y, Huang T, Siu HL et al. IGF2BP3 functions as a potential oncogene and is a crucial target of miR-34a in gastric carcinogenesis. Mol. Cancer 16(1), 77 (2017).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 9. Cai J, Yang F. RNA m(6)A methyltransferase METTL3 promotes the growth of prostate cancer by regulating hedgehog pathway. Onco Targets Ther 12, 9143–9152 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 10. Chen Y, Peng C, Chen J et al. WTAP facilitates progression of hepatocellular carcinoma via m6A-HuR-dependent epigenetic silencing of ETS1. Mol. Cancer 18(1), 127 (2019).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 11. Cheng M, Sheng L, Gao Q et al. The m(6)A methyltransferase METTL3 promotes bladder cancer progression via AFF4/NF-kappaB/MYC signaling network. Oncogene 38(19), 3667–3680 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 12. Li J, Han Y, Zhang H et al. The m6A demethylase FTO promotes the growth of lung cancer cells by regulating the m6A level of USP7 mRNA. Mol. Cancer 512(3), 479–485 (2019).CASGoogle Scholar
    • 13. Li T, Hu PS, Zuo Z et al. METTL3 facilitates tumor progression via an m(6)A-IGF2BP2-dependent mechanism in colorectal carcinoma. Mol Cancer 18(1), 112 (2019).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 14. Miao W, Chen J, Jia L, Ma J, Song D. The m6A methyltransferase METTL3 promotes osteosarcoma progression by regulating the m6A level of LEF1. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 516(3), 719–725 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 15. Qian JY, Gao J, Sun X et al. KIAA1429 acts as an oncogenic factor in breast cancer by regulating CDK1 in an N6-methyladenosine-independent manner. Oncogene 38(33), 6123–6141 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 16. Zhan H, Situ J, Li W et al. The RNA m6A methyltransferase METTL3 promotes pancreatic cancer cell proliferation and invasion. Onco. Targets Ther. 215(11), 152666 (2019).Google Scholar
    • 17. Zhou R, Gao Y, Lv D, Wang C, Wang D, Li Q. METTL3 mediated m(6)A modification plays an oncogenic role in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma by regulating DeltaNp63. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 515(2), 310–317 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 18. Zou D, Dong L, Li C, Yin Z, Rao S, Zhou Q. The m(6)A eraser FTO facilitates proliferation and migration of human cervical cancer cells. Cancer Cell Int. 19, 321 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 19. Mittal V. Epithelial mesenchymal transition in tumor metastasis. Annu. Rev. Pathol. 13, 395–412 (2018).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 20. Toh TB, Lim JJ, Chow EK. Epigenetics of hepatocellular carcinoma. Clin. Transl. Med. 8(1), 13 (2019).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 21. Shi Y, Fan S, Wu M, Zuo Z. YTHDF1 links hypoxia adaptation and non-small-cell lung cancer progression. Nat Commun 10(1), 4892 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 22. Yang C, Chen Y, Bai Y et al. YTHDF1 regulates tumorigenicity and cancer stem cell-like activity in human colorectal carcinoma. Front Oncol. 9, 332 (2019).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 23. Lin X, Chai G, Wu Y, Li J, Chen F, Liu J. RNA m(6)A methylation regulates the epithelial mesenchymal transition of cancer cells and translation of snail. Nat Commun 10(1), 2065 (2019).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 24. Zhou Y, Yin Z, Hou B et al. Expression profiles and prognostic significance of RNA N6-methyladenosine-related genes in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: evidence from independent datasets. Cancer Manag. Res. 11, 3921–3931 (2019).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 25. Chen J, Sun Y, Xu X et al. YTH domain family 2 orchestrates epithelial-mesenchymal transition/proliferation dichotomy in pancreatic cancer cells. Cell Cycle 16(23), 2259–2271 (2017).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 26. Yang Z, Li J, Feng G et al. MicroRNA-145 modulates N(6)-methyladenosine levels by targeting the 3′-untranslated mRNA region of the N(6)-methyladenosine binding YTH domain family 2 protein. J. Biol. Chem. 292(9), 3614–3623 (2017).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar
    • 27. Li J, Meng S, Xu M et al. Downregulation of N(6)-methyladenosine binding YTHDF2 protein mediated by miR-493-3p suppresses prostate cancer by elevating N(6)-methyladenosine levels. Oncotarget 9(3), 3752–3764 (2018).Crossref, MedlineGoogle Scholar
    • 28. Xie L, Sheng H, Li Z et al. YTH domain family 2 promotes lung cancer cell growth by facilitating 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase mRNA translation. J. Cell Mol. Med. doi:10.1111/jcmm.15063 (2019) (Epub ahead of print).Google Scholar
    • 29. Xie H, Li J, Ying Y et al. METTL3/YTHDF2 m(6) A axis promotes tumorigenesis by degrading SETD7 and KLF4 mRNAs in bladder cancer. doi:10.1111/jcmm.15063 (2020) (Epub ahead of print).CrossrefGoogle Scholar
    • 30. Sheng H, Li Z, Su S et al. YTH domain family 2 promotes lung cancer cell growth by facilitating 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase mRNA translation. Carcinogenesis doi:10.1093/carcin/bgz152 (2019) (Epub ahead of print).Google Scholar
    • 31. Chen M, Wei L, Law CT et al. RNA N6-methyladenosine methyltransferase-like 3 promotes liver cancer progression through YTHDF2-dependent posttranscriptional silencing of SOCS2. Hepatology 67(6), 2254–2270 (2018).Crossref, Medline, CASGoogle Scholar