Prognostic value and gene regulatory network of CMSS1 in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Cms1 ribosomal small subunit homolog (CMSS1) is an RNA-binding protein that may play an important role in tumorigenesis and development.

OBJECTIVE: RNA-seq data from the GEPIA database and the UALCAN database were used to analyze the expression of CMSS1 in liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) and its relationship with the clinicopathological features of the patients.

METHODS: LinkedOmics was used to identify genes associated with CMSS1 expression and to identify miRNAs and transcription factors significantly associated with CMSS1 by GSEA.

RESULTS: The expression level of CMSS1 in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues was significantly higher than that in normal tissues. In addition, the expression level of CMSS1 in advanced tumors was significantly higher than that in early tumors. The expression level of CMSS1 was higher in TP53-mutated tumors than in non-TP53-mutated tumors. CMSS1 expression levels were strongly correlated with disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients with LIHC, and high CMSS1 expression predicted poorer OS (P< 0.01) and DFS (P< 0.01). Meanwhile, our results suggested that CMSS1 is associated with the composition of the immune microenvironment of LIHC.

CONCLUSIONS: The present study suggests that CMSS1 is a potential molecular marker for the diagnosis and prognostic of LIHC.