Identification of Immune-Related LncRNA Pairs for Predicting Prognosis and Immunotherapeutic Response in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Abstract

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have multiple functions with regard to the cancer immunity response and the tumor microenvironment. The prognosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is still poor currently, and it may be effective to predict the clinical outcome and immunotherapeutic response of HNSCC by immunogenic analysis. Therefore, by using univariate COX analysis and Lasso Cox regression, we identified a signature consisting of 21 immune-related lncRNA pairs (IRLPs) that predicted clinical outcome and Immunotherapeutic response in HNSCC. Specifically, it was associated with immune cell infiltration (i.e., T cells CD4 memory resting, CD8 T cells, macrophages M0, M2, and NK cells), and more importantly this signature was strongly related with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) [such as PDCD1 (r = -0.35, P < 0.001), CTLA4 (r = -0.26, P < 0.001), LAG3 (r = -0.22, P < 0.001) and HAVCR2 (r = -0.2, P < 0.001)] and immunotherapy-related biomarkers (MMR and HLA). The present study highlighted the value of the 21 IRLPs signature as a predictor of prognosis and immunotherapeutic response in HNSCC.

Identification of Gene-Tyrosine Kinase 2 (TYK2) in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients—An Integrated Bioinformatics Approach

“…Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSC) accounts for more than 90% of head and neck cancer, which is the sixth most common malignancy in the world; thereby, around 800,000 novel diagnoses are reported annually, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) (WHO [ 1 ], [ 2 , 3 ]). Depending on localization, HNSC can show very poor prognosis, which is furthermore influenced by differentiation, perineural invasion, depth, and diameter, as well as metastasis formation ([ 4 – 6 ]).…”

“…Additionally, different immunological issues related to prognosis of HNSC have been raised during the past years; for example, infiltrating T-lymphocytes and regulatory T cells have been highlighted as important issues for HNSC prognosis and development ([ 7 , 8 ]). Accordingly, the role of immunomodulation and potentially related biomarkers in therapy and diagnosis of HNSC has become an emerging field ([ 2 , 3 , 9 , 10 ]). Alongside with this aspect, the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms and related pathways have been highlighted ([ 11 – 13 ]).…”

A novel immune-related lncRNA pair signature for prognostic prediction and immune response evaluation in gastric cancer: a bioinformatics and biological validation study

“…In another study, a 14-IRGP signature was developed as a novel prognostic marker for predicting survival of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [ 37 ]. As for IRLP signature, one study identified a 21-IRLP signature to predict the clinical outcomes and immunotherapeutic responses in case of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [ 38 ]. However, this is the only relevant study about IRLP signature in tumor so far.…”

The role of long non-coding RNAs in the pathogenesis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

“…One study has highlighted the value of the 21 immune-related lncRNA pairs signature as a predictor of prognosis and immunotherapeutic response in HNSCC. 87 Also, by pairing immune-related lncRNAs, Yin et al. have established a signature, concerning specific expression levels, to predict the immune landscape of HNSCC, thus guiding the clinical therapy of HNSCC patients.…”