ESPL1 is Elevated in Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Predicts Prognosis

Abstract

The extra spindle pole bodies-like 1 (ESPL1) gene is associated with malignant biological behaviors in several tumors. Nevertheless, the correlation between hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and ESPL1 has not been determined. The present study analyzed the molecular function and prognostic value of ESPL1 in HCC. Patients and Methods: Samples from 121 HCCs and 119 adjacent normal tissue specimens were subjected to next-generation sequencing. Clinicopathological and genetic data of HCC patients in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) were also collected. ESPL1 expression was assessed in 20 pairs of HCC and normal liver specimens by qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC). The prognostic value of ESPL1 expression was determined by Cox univariate and multivariate regression analyses. ESPL1-related co-expressed genes were evaluated by weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). Processes and pathways involving ESPL1 in HCC were determined by Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses. The prognostic values of hub genes were determined by joint effect survival analysis. Results: RNA-Seq, RT-qPCR and IHC showed that ESPL1 expression was significantly higher in HCC than in normal liver tissues. Increased ESPL1 expression, greater tumor size and advanced BCLC stage were independently prognostic of poorer overall survival; and increased ESPL1 and advanced BCLC stage were independently prognostic of poorer recurrence-free survival. WGCNA showed that the top 10 co-expressed genes associated with ESPL1 were GTSE1,

The upregulation and transcriptional regulatory mechanisms of Extra spindle pole bodies like 1 in bladder cancer: An immunohistochemistry and high-throughput screening Evaluation

“…Previous studies have shown that ESPL1 is highly expressed in various tumours. Song et al [ 11 ] showed that ESPL1 expression was upregulated in HCC and substantially increased the mortality rate of HCC patients. Liu et al [ 30 ] suggested that the high expression of ESPL1 promoted the proliferation, migration and apoptosis of LUAD cells.…”

“…Increasing evidence indicates that ESPL1 participates in cell cycle signalling in breast cancer [ 32 ], endometrial cancer (UCEC) [ 33 ] and HCC [ 11 ], thus promoting the proliferation and migration of cancer cells [ 14 ]. However, in terms of BC, the potential pathways in which ESPL1 is involved still need to be better defined.…”

“…However, in terms of BC, the potential pathways in which ESPL1 is involved still need to be better defined. ESPL1 expression was the highest in the S and G2 phases of cancer cells, suggesting that ESPL1 might promote mitosis and tumour proliferation by regulating these phases of the cancer cell cycle [ 11 ]. The literature has shown that activated ESPL1 released endoglin subunits (e.g., RAD21) and promoted the provision of sister chromatid cohesion (SCC) to ensure stable inheritance [ 33 ].…”

“…Extra spindle pole bodies like 1 (ESPL1) are cysteine endopeptidases, and these proteins participate in several aspects of the cell cycle by activating segregase [ 10 ]. There is growing evidence that high expression of ESPL1 is strongly associated with the development of malignant tumours, such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) [ 11 ], glioma [ 12 ], lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) [ 13 ] and colorectal cancer (CRC) [ 14 ]. In addition, Chen et al found that the high expression of ESPL1 was associated with the occurrence and recurrence of BC [ 15 ].…”

Investigation of the relationship between COVID-19 and pancreatic cancer using bioinformatics and systems biology approaches

“…[ 38 ] Overexpression or aberrant activation of ESPL1 can lead to aneuploidy and chromosomal instability, which are hallmarks of cancer. Research has shown that ESPL1 is involved in the development and progression of several types of cancer, including glioma, [ 39 ] breast, [ 40 ] stomach, [ 41 ] bladder, [ 42 ] liver, [ 43 ] and endometrial [ 44 ] cancers. HJURP is a protein-coding gene that plays a crucial role in centromere function and chromosomal stability by facilitating the assembly of the CENP-A nucleosome at centromeres.…”