TRP Family Genes Are Differently Expressed and Correlated with Immune Response in Glioma

Transient receptor potential-related risk model predicts prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma patients

BACKGROUND

Members of the transient receptor potential (TRP) protein family shape oncogenic development, but the specific relevance of TRP-related genes in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has yet to be defined.

AIM

To investigate the role of TRP genes in HCC, their association with HCC development and treatment was examined.

METHODS

HCC patient gene expression and clinical data were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas database, and univariate and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator Cox regression models were employed to explore the TRP-related risk spectrum. Based on these analyses, clinically relevant TRP family genes were selected, and the association between the key TRP canonical type 1 (TRPC1) gene and HCC patient prognosis was evaluated.

RESULTS

In total, 28 TRP family genes were screened for clinical relevance, with multivariate analyses ultimately revealing three of these genes (TRPC1, TRP cation channel subfamily M member 2, and TRP cation channel subfamily M member 6) to be significantly associated with HCC patient prognosis (P < 0.05). These genes were utilized to establish a TRP-related risk model. Patients were separated into low- and high-risk groups based on the expression of these genes, and high-risk patients exhibited a significantly poorer prognosis (P = 0.001). Functional analyses highlighted pronounced differences in the immune status of patients in these two groups and associated enriched immune pathways. TRPC1 was identified as a candidate gene in this family worthy of further study, with HCC patients expressing higher TRPC1 levels exhibiting poorer survival outcomes. Consistently, quantitative, immunohistochemistry, and western blot analyses revealed increased TRPC1 expression in HCC.

CONCLUSION

These three TRP genes help determine HCC patient prognosis, providing insight into tumor immune status and immunological composition. These findings will help design combination therapies including immunotherapeutic and anti-TRP agents.

TRPML2 Mucolipin Channels Drive the Response of Glioma Stem Cells to Temozolomide and Affect the Overall Survival in Glioblastoma Patients

The survival of patients with glioblastoma (GBM) is poor. The main cause is the presence of glioma stem cells (GSCs), exceptionally resistant to temozolomide (TMZ) treatment. This last may be related to the heterogeneous expression of ion channels, among them TRPML2. Its mRNA expression was evaluated in two different neural stem cell (NS/PC) lines and sixteen GBM stem-like cells by qRT-PCR. The response to TMZ was evaluated in undifferentiated or differentiated GSCs, and in TRPML2-induced or silenced GSCs. The relationship between TRPML2 expression and responsiveness to TMZ treatment was evaluated by MTT assay showing that increased TRPML2 mRNA levels are associated with resistance to TMZ. This research was deepened by qRT-PCR and western blot analysis. PI3K/AKT and JAK/STAT pathways as well as ABC and SLC drug transporters were involved. Finally, the relationship between TRPML2 expression and overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in patient-derived GSCs was evaluated by Kaplan-Meier analysis. The expression of TRPML2 mRNA correlates with worse OS and PFS in GBM patients. Thus, the expression of TRPML2 in GSCs influences the responsiveness to TMZ in vitro and affects OS and PFS in GBM patients.