HMMR and CDC25C as Prognostic Biomarkers in HNSCC

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) ranks among the most common cancers worldwide, but its underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Identifying potential biomarkers can improve diagnosis and treatment options.

Hongrui Zhang and the team aimed to identify prognostic biomarkers and clarify the molecular mechanisms involved in HNSCC.

Researchers applied weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), followed by pathway enrichment, immune cell infiltration, survival, and methylation analyses, to identify hub genes related to HNSCC prognosis. They validated the expression of these hub genes using immunofluorescence staining.

The results demonstrated that 10,274 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Through WGCNA, the yellow module (R² = 0.33, P= 2e-14) was most associated with HNSCC histological grade, with the “Cell Cycle” pathway being highly enriched. They identified 10 hub genes, with 8 confirmed through survival analysis using a different dataset (GSE41613).

Additionally, 4 methylation loci in 3 hub genes (cg15122828, cg20554926 in HMMR, cg12519992 in CDC25C, and cg2655739 in KIAA0101/PCLAF) were significantly related to survival. High expression of HMMR and CDC25C mRNA and protein was observed in HNSCC patients.

The study concluded that HMMR and CDC25C are potential prognostic and therapeutic biomarkers in HNSCC.

This study was supported by Zhejiang Medical and Health Science and Technology Plan (Grant No. 2024KY603) to Hongrui Zhang.

Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39323031/

Zhang H, Xu Y, Han H, et al. (2024). “Comprehensive Analysis Identifies Hyaluronan Mediated Motility Receptor and Cell Division Cycle 25C as Potential Prognostic Biomarkers in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.” Cancer Control. 2024;31:10732748241287904. doi:10.1177/10732748241287904