PLIN3 is up-regulated and correlates with poor prognosis in clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: PLIN3, one of the members of the perilipin family, has been reported to be involved in the formation and accumulation of lipid droplets. However, the expression levels and diagnostic and prognostic value of PLIN3 in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) remain unclear.

METHODS: Bioinformatic analysis was used to assess the levels of PLIN3 and the correlation between PLIN3 levels and clinicopathological parameters in renal cancer. The expression levels of PLIN3 were determined in human RCC tissues and cell lines by western blot, immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry assays. Receiver operating characteristic curves and Kaplan-Meier curves were used to analyze the diagnostic and prognostic significance of PLIN3 in RCC.

RESULTS: The expression level of PLIN3 was elevated in RCC tissues and cell lines, which was consistent with the analysis of the TCGA and Oncomine cancer database. The receiver operating characteristic curve indicated that high PLIN3 expression can distinguish cancer tissues from normal kidney tissues (area under the curve = 0.7270, P<0.0001). Kaplan-Meier curves revealed that elevated PLIN3 predicted poor disease-free survival and overall survival.

CONCLUSIONS: PLIN3 is highly expressed in kidney cancer, and high expression of PLIN3 can serve as a useful diagnostic and prognostic biomarker. PLIN3 functional inhibition can be used as a new clinical treatment option.