Differential roles of highly expressed PFKFB4 in colon adenocarcinoma patients

• Published in: Scientific reports 2023-09, Vol.13 (1), p.16284-11, Article 16284
• Main Authors: Gu, Xiaojing, Dai, Xingchen, Huang, Yongli, Zhang, Yuhuan, Dong, Lintao, Gao, Chanchan, Wang, Fang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/67/1504/1885; 631/67/2327; 631/67/395; Adenocarcinoma; Adenocarcinoma - genetics; Amino acids; Biosynthesis; Cancer; CD4 antigen; CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes; CD8 antigen; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes; Colon; Colon, Sigmoid; Colonic Neoplasms - genetics; Colorectal cancer; Dendritic cells; Gluconeogenesis; Glucose metabolism; Glycolysis; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Immunoregulation; Infiltration; Inflammation; Leukocytes (neutrophilic); Lymphocytes; Lymphocytes T; Macrophages; Mast cells; Medical prognosis; Metabolic pathways; Metabolism; Metastases; multidisciplinary; Pentose phosphate pathway; Phosphofructokinase-2 - genetics; Prognosis; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Therapeutic targets; Tumor microenvironment; Tumor Microenvironment - genetics; Tumors
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43619-4

Colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) is a common malignant tumor, and the role of the protein PFKFB4 in glycolysis and pentose phosphate pathways is crucial. Researchers investigated the clinical significance of PFKFB4 in COAD by studying its expression in 79 tissue samples using immunohistochemistry. We found that PFKFB4 expression was significantly higher in COAD patients, particularly in the sigmoid colon. Interestingly, high PFKFB4 expression was associated with both improved overall survival (OS) and post-progression survival (PPS) in COAD patients. Further analysis revealed that genes associated with PFKFB4 were linked to various metabolic pathways, including amino acid biosynthesis, glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, glucose metabolism, and inflammatory response. PFKFB4 expression also showed correlations with the infiltration of different immune cell types in COAD patients, such as CD8+ T cells, CD4+ T cells, regulatory T cells (Tregs), macrophages, neutrophils, dendritic cells, active mast cells, and resting NK cells. Overall, the relationship between PFKFB4 expression and the prognosis of COAD is complex and diverse, possibly playing different roles at different stages of the disease. Moreover, its mechanism might involve interactions with various metabolic pathways and immune infiltration in the tumor microenvironment. These findings provide valuable insights into the potential role of PFKFB4 as a biomarker or therapeutic target in COAD.