A Three-Genes Signature Predicting Colorectal Cancer Relapse Reveals LEMD1 Promoting CRC Cells Migration by RhoA/ROCK1 Signaling Pathway.

OBJECTIVE

Colorectal cancer (CRC) patients that experience early relapse consistently exhibit poor survival. However, no effective approach has been developed for the diagnosis and prognosis prediction of postoperative relapsed CRC.

METHODS

Multiple datasets from the GEO database and TCGA database were utilized for bioinformatics analysis. WGCNA analyses and RRA analysis were performed to identify key genes. The COX/Lasso regression model was used to construct the recurrence model. Subsequent experiments further validated the potential role of the hub genes in CRC.

RESULTS

A comprehensive analysis was performed on multiple CRC datasets and a CRC recurrence model was constructed containing LEMD1, SERPINE1, and SIAE. After further validation in two independent databases, we selected LEMD1 for experiments and found that LEMD1 could regulate CRC cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and promote EMT transition. The Rho-GTPase pulldown experiments further indicated that LEMD1 could affect RhoA activity and regulate cytoskeletal dynamics. Finally, we demonstrated that LEMD1 promoted CRC cell migration through the RhoA/ROCK1 signaling pathway.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, a CRC relapse model consisting of LEMD1, SERPINE1, and SIAE was constructed by comprehensive analysis of multiple CRC datasets. LEMD1 could promote CRC cell migration through the RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway.