LCP1 is a potential prognostic biomarker and correlates with immune infiltration in triple negative breast cancer

Abstract

Objective Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC), known for its aggressiveness and treatment challenges due to the absence of ER, PR, and HER2 receptors, is the focus of this study. The research emphasizes the need for new biomarkers like LCP1 (Lymphocyte cytosolic protein 1), which plays a crucial role in cell processes and immune cell activity, to predict outcomes and guide treatments in TNBC. Methods We explored LCP1's potential as a prognostic biomarker in TNBC, analyzing its mRNA and protein expression levels and their correlation with immune cell infiltration. This involved data from GTEx and TCGA, immunohistochemistry on TNBC and benign tumor samples, and statistical analyses to examine LCP1's relationship with patient clinical characteristics and macrophage markers. We also assessed survival rates, immune cell infiltration, and drug sensitivity related to LCP1 using various bioinformatics tools. Results The results indicated that LCP1 expression was significantly higher in TNBC tissues compared to adjacent normal tissues. However, high expression of LCP1 was significantly associated with favorable survival outcomes in patients with TNBC. Enrichment analysis revealed that genes co-expressed with LCP1 were significantly enriched in various immune processes. LCP1 showed a positive correlation with the infiltration of resting dendritic cells, M1 macrophages, and memory CD4 T cells, and a negative correlation with M2 macrophages. Further analysis suggested a link between high levels of LCP1 and increased survival outcomes in cancer patients receiving immunotherapy. Conclusion LCP1 shows promise as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for improving TNBC treatment strategies.