Abstract
The solute carrier 30 (SLC30) family genes play a fundamental role in various cancers. However, the diverse expression patterns, prognostic value, and potential mechanism of SLC30A family genes in gastric cancer (GC) remain unknown. Herein, we analyzed the expression and survival data of SLC30A family genes in GC patients using multiple bioinformatic approaches. Expression data of SLC30A family genes for GC patients were extracted from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and genetic alteration frequency assessed by using cBioportal database. And validated the expression of SLC30A family genes in GC tissues and corresponding normal tissues. The prognostic value of SLC30A family genes in gastric cancer patients were explored using Kaplan–Meier plotter database. Functional enrichment analysis performed using DAVID database and clusterProfiler package. And ssGSEA algorithm was performed to explore the relationship between the SLC30A family genes and the infiltration of immune cells. We found that the median expression levels of SLC30A1-3, 5–7, and 9 were significantly upregulated in gastric cancer tissues compared to non-cancerous tissues, while SLC30A4 was downregulated. Meanwhile, SLC30A1-7, and 9 were significantly correlated with advanced tumor stage and nodal metastasis status, SLC30A5-7, and 9–10 were significantly related to the Helicobacter pylori infection status of GC patients. High expression of five genes (SLC30A1, 5–7, and 9) was significantly correlated with better overall survival (OS), first progression survival (FPS), and post progression survival (PPS). Conversely, upregulated SLC30A2-4, 8, and 10 expression was markedly associated with poor OS, FP and PPS. And SLC30A family genes were closely associated with the infiltration of immune cells. The present study implied that SLC30A5 and 7 may be potential biomarkers for predicting prognosis in GC patients, SLC30A2 and 3 play an oncogenic role in GC patients and could provide a new strategy for GC patients treatment.
Highlights
Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most prevalent malignancy worldwide[1]
Comparison of the transcriptional expression of SLC30A family genes in gastric tumor tissues and normal tissues indicated that mRNA expression of SLC30A1-3, 5–7, and 9 was significantly upregulated in cancer tissues compared to non-cancerous tissues in GC patients, while SLC30A4 was downregulated in the former compared to the latter (Fig. 1A and Figure S3)
Assessment of the correlation between SLC30A family genes expression levels and the tumor stages of GC patients indicated that the expression levels of most SLC30A family genes, including SLC30A1, 5–7, and 9, were significantly and positively associated with tumor stage in GC patients
Summary
Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most prevalent malignancy worldwide[1]. According to the latest cancer statistics, GC is considered the second most common cause of cancer-related mortality in the w orld[2]. Multiple studies have reported that various environmental elements are considered as gastric cancer risk factors including trace elements[4,5,6]. Surgery is the primary therapeutic for GC patients, even with the advances in diagnosis and treatment in the past few years. GC patient prognosis remains unfavorable in that many patients are still initially diagnosed at an advanced stage[7]. It is extremely important to seek potential prognostic biomarkers for early diagnosis and novel therapeutic targets
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