High SALM3 Expression in Tumor Cells and Fibroblasts Is Correlated with Poor Prognosis in Gastric Cancer Patients.

Ying Liu,Xiaoli Chen,Qingjie Song,Xi Chen,Xiaobing Yang,Han Wu

doi:10.1155/2019/8282414

Abstract

Objective The synaptic adhesion-like molecule (SALM) family is largely restricted to neural tissues and is involved in the regulation of neurite outgrowth and synapse formation. However, the expression of SALM3 in gastric cancer (GC) and its clinical significance remain unclear. The aim of the present study was to investigate the prognostic value of SALM3 in patients with GC. Patients and Methods Expression of SALM3 was validated by tissue microarrays from 730 GC patients and statistically assessed for correlations with the clinical parameters and the prognosis of the patients. The transcriptional and survival data of SALM3 in GC patients were also mined through the Oncomine and Kaplan-Meier Plotter databases. Results SALM3 is overexpressed in the tumor cells and fibroblasts of clinical GC tissues, and a high level of SALM3 was significantly associated with tumor invasive characteristics. Cox proportional hazards univariate and multivariate regression analyses revealed SALM3 expression in tumor cells or stroma as an independent prognostic factor in the overall survival rate of GC patients. Furthermore, the survival of GC patients with high SALM3 expression in both tumor cells and fibroblasts was significantly poorer than that of the other groups. Oncomine and Kaplan-Meier Plotter analyses further confirmed high levels of SALM3 expression in GC, and high levels of SALM3 expression were associated with shorter survival in patients. Conclusion SALM3 may be a prognostic factor for GC and may potentially be a high-priority therapeutic target.

Highlights

Gastric cancer (GC) is the second leading cause of cancerassociated mortality worldwide, and it is the most common gastrointestinal malignancy in Eastern Europe and East Asia, especially in China [1,2,3]
We evaluated the relationship between SALM3 expression in GC cells and tumoral stroma in tissue microarrays (TMAs) by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and clinicopathologic characteristics including prognostic significance
We revealed that SALM3 was highly expressed in GC and fibroblasts and was significantly associated with clinical parameters and reduced survival time of patients with GC

Summary

Introduction

Gastric cancer (GC) is the second leading cause of cancerassociated mortality worldwide, and it is the most common gastrointestinal malignancy in Eastern Europe and East Asia, especially in China [1,2,3]. Considerable advances have been achieved in early diagnosis, surgical techniques, and medical treatment, more than half of patients at the advanced stage of the disease die of cancer recurrence and metastasis, even after receiving radical gastrectomy [4]. Postoperative recurrence and metastasis are the biggest obstacles to the treatment of GC [5]. In view of the high frequency of new cases and the adverse outcomes in GC, there has been an exploration for biologic markers that are associated with the development and prognosis of this disease. To date, no such markers have been found as ideal clinical predictive factors for the diagnosis, therapy, or prognosis of GC. It is essential to identify novel prognostic and predictive markers, which will aid in novel effective therapies for GC

Methods

Results

Conclusion