Hospital of Stomatology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510055, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
Stomatological Hospital, School of Stomatology, Southern Medical University, S366 Jiangnan Boulevard, Guangzhou 510280, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand). 2024 Jul 28;70(7):193-199. doi: 10.14715/cmb/2024.70.7.28.
Fructose-6-phosphate 2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase 4 (PFKFB4) is a crucial enzyme in the glycolysis pathway, possessing both kinase and phosphatase capabilities. Although it has emerged as an important oncogene in various cancer types, its function in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is still not well understood. In our research, PFKFB4 expression was assessed via immunohistochemical (IHC) staining of tissue microarrays and OSCC patient specimens. The transcriptional expression of PFKFB4 in OSCC was analyzed by utilizing The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset. Correlation between PFKFB4 expression and clinicopathological features was examined using the χ2 test. Prognostic investigation of PFKFB4 was conducted via Kaplan-Meier and Cox analyses. PFKFB4 levels were notably elevated in OSCC samples in comparison to adjacent normal tissues (P < 0.001). Elevated PFKFB4 expression was associated with higher histologic grade (P = 0.0438), higher T stage (P = 0.031), and more advanced clinical stage (P = 0.0063). The ROC curve demonstrated the diagnostic potential of PFKFB4 (AUC = 0.827). Increased levels of PFKFB4 were linked to decreased overall survival (OS) (P = 0.04), poorer disease-specific survival (DSS) (P = 0.04), and shorter progression-free interval (PFI) (P < 0.001). PFKFB4 expression was identified as an independent risk factor for OS based on Cox regression analysis [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.517, P = 0.044)]. An OS nomogram was constructed with a concordance index of 0.690. Our findings reveal that upregulated PFKFB4 expression in OSCC tissues could serve as a potential prognostic biomarker.
果糖-6-磷酸 2-激酶/果糖-2,6-二磷酸酶 4（PFKFB4）是糖酵解途径中的关键酶，具有激酶和磷酸酶的双重能力。尽管它已成为各种癌症类型中的重要癌基因，但它在口腔鳞状细胞癌（OSCC）中的功能仍不明确。在我们的研究中，通过组织微阵列和 OSCC 患者标本的免疫组织化学（IHC）染色评估了 PFKFB4 的表达。利用癌症基因组图谱（TCGA）数据集分析了 OSCC 中 PFKFB4 的转录表达。通过 χ2 检验研究了 PFKFB4 表达与临床病理特征之间的相关性。通过 Kaplan-Meier 和 Cox 分析进行了 PFKFB4 的预后研究。与相邻正常组织相比，OSCC 样本中 PFKFB4 的水平明显升高（P<0.001）。升高的 PFKFB4 表达与更高的组织学分级（P=0.0438）、更高的 T 分期（P=0.031）和更晚期的临床分期（P=0.0063）相关。ROC 曲线显示了 PFKFB4 的诊断潜力（AUC=0.827）。PFKFB4 水平的升高与总生存期（OS）（P=0.04）、疾病特异性生存期（DSS）（P=0.04）和无进展生存期（PFI）（P<0.001）缩短相关。基于 Cox 回归分析，PFKFB4 表达被确定为 OS 的独立危险因素[风险比（HR）=1.517，P=0.044]。构建了 OS 诺模图，其一致性指数为 0.690。我们的研究结果表明，OSCC 组织中上调的 PFKFB4 表达可能成为一种潜在的预后生物标志物。
