Background: This study explored whether laryngeal carcinoma could be divided into different subtypes based on molecular differences using a molecular subtype-prediction model.
Methods: We extracted data from the Cancer Genome Atlas and Gene Expression Omnibus databases and then performed unsupervised cluster analysis to identify discrete molecular subtypes of laryngeal carcinoma. Significance analysis of microarrays was performed to detect differentially expressed genes for each subtype, and gene set enrichment analysis and the GenCliP3 software were used to label gene functions and identify key pathways.
Results: We categorized 126 patients into C1 and C2 molecular subtypes associated with pathologic grade. The C2 subtype appeared more aggressive, with a worse prognosis. The most significant enrichment pathway of the C2 subtype was the Hedgehog pathway, and GLI1 was a core gene.
Conclusions: Laryngeal carcinoma can be divided into two subtypes based on differences in molecular expression, which could identify key molecules associated with prognosis.
Keywords: GLI1; Hedgehog pathway; TCGA; laryngeal carcinoma; molecular subtype.
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