High expression of PPM1G is associated with the progression and poor prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Xiong, Dan-Lei^{a; 1} | Li, Qian^{b; 1} | Wang, Heng^b | Jin, Wei-Li^c | Fan, Xiao-Ming^{a; *} | Ma, Ying-Yu^{d; *}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Ultrasound, Zhejiang Provincial People’s Hospital, People’s Hospital of Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China | [b] Graduate Department, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, Anhui, China | [c] Department of Gastroenterology, Nanxun People’s Hospital (Zhejiang Provincial People’s Hospital Nanxun Branch), Huzhou, Zhejiang, China | [d] Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial People’s Hospital, People’s Hospital of Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding authors: Xiao-Ming Fan, Department of Ultrasound, Zhejiang Provincial People’s Hospital, No. 158 Shangtang Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310014, China. Tel.: +86 571 85893291; E-mail: [email protected]. Ying-Yu Ma, Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial People’s Hospital, People’s Hospital of Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310014, China. Tel.: +86 571 85893781; E-mail: [email protected].

Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract: BACKGROUND: PPM1G, a member of the serine/threonine protease family, dephosphorylates various proteins and may be involved in cancer development. The role and mechanism of PPM1G in HCC still needs to be verified. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to explore the role of PPM1G in the occurrence, development and prognosis of HCC. METHODS: Using bioinformatics (UALCAN, cBioPortal, Linkedomics, STRING and GSEA) to analyze the expression of PPM1G mRNA in HCC, its clinical relevance and possible involved signaling pathways. The expression of PPM1G protein was determined by immunohistochemistry in 311 cases of HCC to evaluate the association between PPM1G and clinical features and prognosis. RESULTS: The expression of PPM1G was significantly upregulated in HCC (P< 0.001), correlated with the metastasis (P= 0.020), pathological grade of HCC (P= 0.032), microvascular invasion (P= 0.040), and HBV infection (P= 0.041). Cox multivariate regression showed high expression of PPM1G was an independent prognostic factor for HCC. Its role in HCC may relate to methylation and frequency mutation. Furthermore, the database showed PPM1G is involved in the signal pathway such as cell cycle, WNT pathway, and mTOR pathway in HCC. CONCLUSION: PPM1G showed an essential function involving in tumor-related pathways in HCC, providing a biological basis for targeted treatment of HCC clinically.

Keywords: PPM1G, HCC, progression, prognosis

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-203248

Journal: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 34, no. 1, pp. 13-22, 2022