AEBP1 as a potential immune-related prognostic biomarker in glioblastoma: a bioinformatic analyses

Mingjian Liu; Yuyu Yu; Ziqian Zhang; Zhenghong Chen; Bin Chen; Yijun Cheng; Yongxu Wei; Jia Li; Hanbing Shang

doi:10.21037/atm-21-5183

AEBP1 as a potential immune-related prognostic biomarker in glioblastoma: a bioinformatic analyses

Ann Transl Med. 2021 Nov;9(22):1657. doi: 10.21037/atm-21-5183.

Authors

Mingjian Liu^#^{1

2}, Yuyu Yu^#³, Ziqian Zhang^#¹, Zhenghong Chen¹, Bin Chen⁴, Yijun Cheng¹, Yongxu Wei¹, Jia Li⁵, Hanbing Shang¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurosurgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
² Department of Neurosurgery, Shanghai East Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
³ Department of Oncology, RuiJin Hospital Lu Wan Branch, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
⁴ Department of Neurosurgery, Yangpu Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
⁵ Institute of Neuroscience, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Background: Adipocyte enhancer binding protein 1 (AEBP1) has been shown to be closely related to cancer progression; however research on its potential role in glioblastoma (GBM) remains limited.

Methods: Following an expression analysis of AEBP1 in GBM through the Oncomine database, other critical findings were accessed via The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Genotype Tissue Expression (GTEx) databases. Specifically, in addition to identifying differentially expressed genes, the Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) were further investigated. Additionally, a gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was performed to examine the enrichment pathways in the AEBP1 high-expression group. To examine the prognostic role of AEBP1 in GBM, survival information was obtained from the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas (CGGA) database. Finally, the relationship between the expression of AEBP1 and immune infiltration in GBM was examined by using the "Gene Module", "Survival Module", and "SCNA Module" on the website "Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER)".

Results: The Oncomine database revealed that AEBP1 was highly expressed in GBM. The prognostic analyses of 4 independent databases (i.e., TCGA, GTEx, Oncomine, and CGGA) revealed that AEBP1 was an independent predictable marker of GBM. The results of the GSEA showed that protein export, prion disease, cytokine receptor interaction, hematopoietic cell lineage, cell adhesion molecules, apoptosis, and the complement and coagulation cascades were differentially enriched in highly expressed AEBP1 phenotypes. Hence the conclusion is that the high expression of AEBP1 is closely correlated to poor prognosis of GBM. The immune analysis demonstrated that AEBP1 copy number alteration might affect immune infiltration in GBM tissues, and thus the survival outcomes of GBM patients.

Conclusions: High AEBP1 expression in GBM is closely correlated to patient prognosis. AEBP1 is a potential therapeutic target for the inhibition of cancerous progression and the development of new immunotherapies for GBM.

Keywords: Glioblastoma (GBM); The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA); adipocyte enhancer binding protein 1 (AEBP1); immune infiltration; prognosis; the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas (CGGA).