Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, Keimyung University, 1095 Dalgubeol-daero, Daegu 42601, Republic of Korea.
Department of Biomedical Laboratory Science, Dong-Eui Institute of Technology, 54 Yangji-ro, Busan 47230, Republic of Korea.
Medicina (Kaunas). 2023 Oct 6;59(10):1782. doi: 10.3390/medicina59101782.
: The gene NKX3.2 plays a role in determining cell fate during development, and mutations of NKX3.2 have been studied in relation to human skeletal diseases. However, due to the lack of studies on the link between NKX3.2 and cancer, we aimed to provide insights into NKX3.2 as a new prognostic biomarker for liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC). : The clinical significance of LIHC was investigated using open gene expression databases. We comprehensively analyzed NKX3.2 expression in LIHC using Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis 2, Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER), and Kaplan-Meier plotter databases. Then, we investigated the association between NKX3.2 expression and tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TIICs). : NKX3.2 expression was higher in the primary tumor group compared to the normal group, and expression was higher in fibrolamellar carcinoma (FLC) compared to other subtypes. When the prognostic value of NKX3.2 was evaluated, highly expressed NKX3.2 significantly improved the overall survival and had an unfavorable prognosis. In addition, NKX3.2 expression was associated with immune cell infiltration. Patients with low gene expression and high macrophage expression had a poorer survival rate than those with low NKX3.2 and low macrophage expression ( = 0.0309). : High NKX3.2 expression may induce poorer prognosis in LIHC. In addition, these findings can be used as basic data due to the lack of available related research. However, further in vivo studies are essential to gain a deeper understanding of the biological role of NKX3.2 in LIHC and its potential implications for cancer development and progression.
: NKX3.2 基因在发育过程中对细胞命运起决定作用，NKX3.2 的突变与人类骨骼疾病有关。然而，由于缺乏关于 NKX3.2 与癌症之间联系的研究，我们旨在为 NKX3.2 作为肝癌的新预后生物标志物提供新的见解。
: 使用公开的基因表达数据库研究 LIHC 的临床意义。我们使用基因表达谱交互式分析 2、肿瘤免疫估计资源（TIMER）和 Kaplan-Meier 绘图器数据库综合分析了 LIHC 中 NKX3.2 的表达。然后，我们研究了 NKX3.2 表达与肿瘤浸润免疫细胞（TIIC）之间的关系。
: NKX3.2 在原发性肿瘤组中的表达高于正常组，在纤维板层癌（FLC）中表达高于其他亚型。当评估 NKX3.2 的预后价值时，高表达的 NKX3.2 显著提高了总体生存率，预后不良。此外，NKX3.2 表达与免疫细胞浸润有关。低基因表达和高巨噬细胞表达的患者生存率低于低 NKX3.2 和低巨噬细胞表达的患者（=0.0309）。
: NKX3.2 高表达可能导致 LIHC 预后不良。此外，由于缺乏相关的可用研究，这些发现可以作为基础数据使用。然而，为了更深入地了解 NKX3.2 在 LIHC 中的生物学作用及其对癌症发展和进展的潜在影响，需要进一步进行体内研究。
