Identification of a seven-lncRNAs panel that serves as a prognosis predictor and contributes to the malignant progression of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Xiwang Zheng; Wei Gao; Zhe Zhang; Xuting Xue; Maierhaba Mijiti; Qingbo Guo; Dilinaer Wusiman; Kai Wang; Xianhai Zeng; Lingbin Xue; Zekun Guo; Changming An; Yongyan Wu

doi:10.3389/fonc.2023.1106249

Identification of a seven-lncRNAs panel that serves as a prognosis predictor and contributes to the malignant progression of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Front Oncol. 2023 May 2:13:1106249. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1106249. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Xiwang Zheng^{1

2}, Wei Gao^{3

4}, Zhe Zhang^{1

5}, Xuting Xue^{1

2}, Maierhaba Mijiti¹, Qingbo Guo¹, Dilinaer Wusiman⁶, Kai Wang⁷, Xianhai Zeng^{3

4}, Lingbin Xue^{3

4}, Zekun Guo⁸, Changming An⁶, Yongyan Wu^{3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Shanxi Key Laboratory of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Cancer, First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China.
² Shanxi Province Clinical Medical Research Center for Precision Medicine of Head and Neck Cancer, First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China.
³ Department of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery, Longgang Otolaryngology Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
⁴ Shenzhen Institute of Otolaryngology & Key Laboratory of Otolaryngology, Longgang Otolaryngology Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
⁵ Shenzhen Eye Hospital, Jinan University, Shenzhen Eye Institute, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
⁶ Department of Head and Neck Surgery, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
⁷ Department of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery, Southern University of Science and Technology Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
⁸ College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China.

Abstract

Background: Laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) is one of the most frequent head and neck cancers worldwide. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play a critical role in tumorigenesis. However, the clinical significance of lncRNAs in LSCC remains largely unknown.

Methods: In this study, transcriptome sequencing was performed on 107 LSCC and paired adjacent normal mucosa (ANM) tissues. Furthermore, RNA expression and clinical data of 111 LSCC samples were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Bioinformatics analysis were performed to construct a model for predicting the overall survival (OS) of LSCC patients. Moreover, we investigated the roles of lncRNAs in LSCC cells through loss-of-function experiments.

Results: A seven-lncRNAs panel including ENSG00000233397, BARX1-DT, LSAMP-AS1, HOXB-AS4, MNX1-AS1, LINC01385, and LINC02893 was identified. The Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated that the seven-lncRNAs panel was significantly associated with OS (HR:6.21 [3.27-11.81], p-value<0.0001), disease-specific survival (DSS) (HR:4.34 [1.83-10.26], p-value=0.0008), and progression-free interval (PFI) (HR:3.78 [1.92-7.43], p-value=0.0001). ROC curves showed the seven-lncRNAs panel predicts OS with good specificity and sensitivity. Separately silencing the seven lncRNAs inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion capacity of LSCC cells.

Conclusion: Collectively, this seven-lncRNAs panel is a promising signature for predicting the prognosis of LSCC patients, and these lncRNAs could serve as potential targets for LSCC treatment.

Keywords: biomarker; laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma; long non-coding RNA; oncogene; prognosis.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 82073101, and 82172961), Shenzhen Science and Technology Program (RCJC20210706091950028), GuangDong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (No. 2023A1515010342), Research Project Supported by Shanxi Scholarship Council of China (No. 2020165), Fund for the Scientific Activities of Selected Return Overseas Professionals in Shanxi Province (No. 20200034), Natural Science Foundation of Shanxi Province (No. 20210302124088, and 201805D211007), Shenzhen Key Medical Discipline Construction Fund (No. SZXK039), Shenzhen Key Laboratory Foundation (No. ZDSYS20200811143757022), the Research Funds for China Central Government-guided Development of Local Science and Technology (No. 2020-165-19), the Research Project of Shanxi Province Health and Family Planning Commission (No. 2019033), the Non-profit Central Research Institute Fund of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (No. 2019-RC-HL-004), Beijing Hope Run Special Fund of Cancer Foundation of China (No. LC2018L06, and LC2020A19).