Department of General Surgery and Centre Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Department of General Surgery, Hefei First People's Hospital, Hefei, China.
Gene. 2025 Jan 20;934:149030. doi: 10.1016/j.gene.2024.149030. Epub 2024 Oct 22.
The transcription factor MAFB is part of the MAF family and is known to promote hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by upregulating cyclin D1. However, its role in HCC immunity and prognosis remains unclear. This study explores the biological function, prognostic significance, and immune impact of MAFB in HCC.
Immunohistochemistry was used to analyze MAFB expression in HCC and adjacent non-tumor tissues. RT-qPCR and Western blotting measured MAFB levels in HCC cell lines. Specific siRNA was used to knockdown MAFB in HCCLM3 and MHCC97H cells, followed by assays to evaluate cell proliferation, migration, and colony formation. Data from the TCGA database and online tools TIMER and TISDB were used to assess the relationship between MAFB and immune responses. A prognostic model based on MAFB-related immune genes was established, and drug sensitivity analysis was performed.
MAFB was significantly overexpressed in HCC tissues. Knockdown of MAFB in HCC cell lines reduced their proliferation and migration abilities. The risk model based on MAFB-related immune genes effectively predicted patient prognosis, supported by ROC curves. Gene set enrichment analysis indicated that MAFB is involved in immune-related pathways. Several drugs were identified as potentially sensitive to MAFB expression levels.
MAFB plays a significant role in HCC development and immune regulation. The prognostic model combining MAFB-related immune genes provides valuable insights for predicting patient outcomes and identifying potential therapeutic targets.
转录因子 MAFB 是 MAF 家族的一部分，已知通过上调细胞周期蛋白 D1 促进肝细胞癌 (HCC)。然而，其在 HCC 免疫和预后中的作用尚不清楚。本研究探讨了 MAFB 在 HCC 中的生物学功能、预后意义和免疫影响。
免疫组织化学分析 HCC 和相邻非肿瘤组织中 MAFB 的表达。RT-qPCR 和 Western blot 测量 HCC 细胞系中 MAFB 的水平。特异性 siRNA 用于敲低 HCCLM3 和 MHCC97H 细胞中的 MAFB，然后进行细胞增殖、迁移和集落形成测定。TCGA 数据库和在线工具 TIMER 和 TISDB 的数据用于评估 MAFB 与免疫反应之间的关系。建立基于 MAFB 相关免疫基因的预后模型，并进行药物敏感性分析。
MAFB 在 HCC 组织中显著过表达。在 HCC 细胞系中敲低 MAFB 降低了它们的增殖和迁移能力。基于 MAFB 相关免疫基因的风险模型通过 ROC 曲线有效地预测了患者的预后。基因集富集分析表明，MAFB 参与了免疫相关途径。几种药物被确定为可能对 MAFB 表达水平敏感。
MAFB 在 HCC 发生和免疫调节中发挥重要作用。结合 MAFB 相关免疫基因的预后模型为预测患者结局和确定潜在治疗靶点提供了有价值的见解。
