Upregulation of RACGAP1 is correlated with poor prognosis and immune infiltration in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a primary liver cancer with high mortality worldwide. Even though the patients with HCC received standard therapies, patients with HCC continue to experience unsatisfactory therapy outcomes. Presently, immune therapy acts as a novel therapeutic management for HCC. The aim of this study was to determine overexpressed genes in HCC and evaluate the association between overexpressed genes with the prognosis and immune infiltration.

METHODS: Gene expression profiles of HCC were analyzed using multiple online databases, and then confirmed by qualitative real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and immunohistochemical analysis. The correlations of gene overexpression with the prognosis and immune infiltration were determined.

RESULTS: Top 11 common differentially expressed genes were identified in HCC, and RACGAP1 was selected for further analysis. RACGAP1 expression was significantly higher in HCC tissues than that in normal tissues. Upregulation of RACGAP1 was correlated with clinical stage and poor prognosis. Additionally, RACGAP1 overexpression was positively related to the infiltration of suppressive immune cells. Moreover, we speculate RACGAP1 may promote tumorigenesis of HCC through immunosuppression mediated by YAP activation.

CONCLUSIONS: Overexpression of RACGAP1 was associated with unfavorable prognosis and immune infiltration in HCC, which indicated that RACGAP1 could be a molecular target for HCC.