Lv Jilian, Meng Xiangze, Li Yuanyuan, Zhang Rui, Zhao Yuan, Yang Xi, Wang Fang, Wang Xinbin
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Zhengzhou Central Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China.
Department of Oromaxillofacial Head and Neck Oncology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Front Genet. 2024 Sep 16;15:1418578. doi: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1418578. eCollection 2024.
Traditional prognostic indicators for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), such as clinicopathological features, human papillomavirus status, and imaging examinations, often lack precision in guiding medical therapy. Therefore, discovering novel tumor biomarkers that can accurately assess prognosis and aid in personalized medical treatment for HNSCC is critical. Solute carrier family 7, member 11 (SLC7A11), is implicated in ferroptosis, and various malignant tumor therapies regulate its expression. However, the mechanisms regulating SLC7A11 expression, the transporter activity, and its specific role in controlling ferroptosis in cancer cells remain unknown. Thus, in this study, we aimed to develop an improved computed tomography (CT) radiomics model that could predict SLC7A11 expression in patients with HNSCC.
We used patient genomic data and corresponding augmented CT images for prognostic analysis and building models. Further, we investigated the potential molecular mechanisms underlying SLC7A11 expression in the immune microenvironment. Our radiomics model successfully predicted mRNA expression in HNSCC tissues and elucidated its association with relevant genes and prognostic outcomes.
SLC7A11 expression level was high within tumor tissues and was connected to the infiltration of eosinophil, CD8 T-cell, and macrophages, which was associated with poor overall survival. Our models demonstrated robust predictive power. The distribution of radiomics scores (RAD scores) within the training and validation sets was markedly different between the high- and low-expression groups of SLC7A11.
SLC7A11 is likely an important factor in the prognosis of HNSCC. SLC7A11 expression can be predicted effectively and reliably by radiomics models based on enhanced CT.
头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）的传统预后指标，如临床病理特征、人乳头瘤病毒状态和影像学检查，在指导医学治疗方面往往缺乏精确性。因此，发现能够准确评估预后并有助于HNSCC个性化医疗的新型肿瘤生物标志物至关重要。溶质载体家族7成员11（SLC7A11）与铁死亡有关，各种恶性肿瘤治疗可调节其表达。然而，调节SLC7A11表达的机制、转运体活性及其在控制癌细胞铁死亡中的具体作用仍不清楚。因此，在本研究中，我们旨在开发一种改进的计算机断层扫描（CT）影像组学模型，该模型可以预测HNSCC患者的SLC7A11表达。
我们使用患者基因组数据和相应的增强CT图像进行预后分析和构建模型。此外，我们研究了免疫微环境中SLC7A11表达潜在的分子机制。我们的影像组学模型成功预测了HNSCC组织中的mRNA表达，并阐明了其与相关基因和预后结果的关联。
肿瘤组织内SLC7A11表达水平较高，且与嗜酸性粒细胞、CD8 T细胞和巨噬细胞的浸润有关，这与总体生存率较差相关。我们的模型显示出强大的预测能力。SLC7A11高表达组和低表达组在训练集和验证集内的影像组学评分（RAD评分）分布明显不同。
SLC7A11可能是HNSCC预后的一个重要因素。基于增强CT的影像组学模型能够有效且可靠地预测SLC7A11的表达。
