Eight types of RNA modification regulators define clinical outcome and immune response in gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND

RNA modifications represent a novel category of biological molecule alterations, characterized by three primary classes of proteins: writers, erasers, and readers. Numerous studies indicate that the dysregulation of these RNA modifications is linked to cancer development and may offer new therapeutic avenues for treatment. In our research, we focused on eight specific genes associated with RNA modifications (RMRGs) to comprehensively analyze their distinct functions in gastric cancer (GC). Furthermore, we aimed to elucidate the roles of RMRGs concerning clinicopathological characteristics, tumor microenvironment, and patient prognosis.

METHODS

In this study, we examined the expression and mutations of RMRGs in gastric cancer (GC) using data from TCGA-STAD (The Cancer Genome Atlas; Stomach adenocarcinoma) and the gene expression omnibus (GSE66229). We identified two subtypes of RMRGs and three gene clusters through consensus clustering analysis, assessing their differences in prognosis and immune cell infiltration patterns. Subsequently, we developed an RMRGs score to evaluate GC prognosis and highlight general immune features within the tumor microenvironment (TME). Lastly, we focused on MAMDC2 to validate its expression in GC and explore the effects of a MAMDC2 inhibitor on GC tumor cells.

RESULTS

We discovered 94 differentially expressed RMRGs common to both the TCGA-STAD and GEO datasets. Notable differences in prognosis and immune cell infiltration were observed between the two RMRGs subtypes and three gene clusters. The RMRGs score emerged as an independent prognostic factor related to the tumor microenvironment (TME) characteristics in gastric cancer (GC). Reducing MAMDC2 levels enhanced cell migration and invasion while decreasing proliferation in vitro.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, this study comprehensively analyzed the role of RMRGs on GC. Our study firstly proposed RMRGs score and demonstrated its potential to be biomarkers for prognosis and immune characteristics. Consequently, RMRGs score is of great clinical significance and can be utilized to develop individualized.