Integrated analysis of scRNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq reveals that GPRC5A is an important prognostic gene in pancreatic cancer and is associated with B-cell Infiltration in pancreatic cancer

Chunlu Dong; Haidong Ma; Ningning Mi; Wenkang Fu; Jianfeng Yi; Long Gao; Haiping Wang; Yanxian Ren; Yanyan Lin; Fangfang Han; Zhou Chen; Wence Zhou

doi:10.3389/fonc.2024.1283164

Integrated analysis of scRNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq reveals that GPRC5A is an important prognostic gene in pancreatic cancer and is associated with B-cell Infiltration in pancreatic cancer

Front Oncol. 2024 Apr 3:14:1283164. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1283164. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Chunlu Dong^{1

2}, Haidong Ma¹, Ningning Mi¹, Wenkang Fu¹, Jianfeng Yi^{1

3}, Long Gao¹, Haiping Wang^{1

2}, Yanxian Ren^{1

2}, Yanyan Lin^{1

2}, Fangfang Han^{1

2}, Zhou Chen^{1

2}, Wence Zhou^{1

4}

Affiliations

¹ The First School of Clinical Medicine of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China.
² The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China.
³ Department of Surgery, The First School of Clinical Medicine of Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou, Gansu, China.
⁴ Lanzhou University Second Hospital, Lanzhou, Gansu, China.

Abstract

Introduction: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a malignancy with poor prognosis. This investigation aimed to determine the relevant genes that affect the prognosis of PC and investigate their relationship with immune infiltration.

Methods: : First, we acquired PC single-cell chip data from the GEO database to scrutinize dissimilarities in immune cell infiltration and differential genes between cancerous and adjacent tissues. Subsequently, we combined clinical data from TCGA to identify genes relevant to PC prognosis. Employing Cox and Lasso regression analyses, we constructed a multifactorial Cox prognostic model, which we subsequently confirmed. The prognostic gene expression in PC was authenticated using RT-PCR. Moreover, we employed the TIMER online database to examine the relationship between the expression of prognostic genes and T and B cell infiltration. Additionally, the expression of GPRC5A and its correlation with B cells infiltration and patient prognosis were ascertained in tissue chips using multiple immune fluorescence staining.

Results: The single-cell analysis unveiled dissimilarities in B-cell infiltration between cancerous and neighboring tissues. We developed a prognostic model utilizing three genes, indicating that patients with high-risk scores experienced a more unfavorable prognosis. Immune infiltration analysis revealed a significant correlation among YWHAZ, GPRC5A, and B cell immune infiltration. In tissue samples, GPRC5A exhibited substantial overexpression and a robust association with an adverse prognosis, demonstrating a positive correlation with B cell infiltration.

Conclusion: GPRC5A is an independent risk factor in PC and correlated with B cell immune infiltration in PC. These outcomes indicated that GPRC5A is a viable target for treating PC.

Keywords: B cell; Gprc5a; immune infiltration; pancreatic cancer; single-cell.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Gansu Province (20JR10RA674, 21JR7RA374) and the First Hospital of Lanzhou University Intramural Fund (ldyyyn2019-45, ldyyyn2020-20).