Screening and function analysis of hub genes and pathways in hepatocellular carcinoma via bioinformatics approaches

BACKGROUND: Liver carcinoma is a major cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Up to date, the mechanisms of liver cancerigenesis and development have not been fully understood. Multi-genes and pathways were involved in the tumorigenesis of liver cancer. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to screen key genes and pathways in liver cancerigenesis and development by using bioinformatics methods. METHODS: A dataset GSE64041 were retrieved from GEO database and the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened out. Then the DEG functions were annotated by gene ontology (GO) and pathway enrichment analysis, respectively. The hub genes were further selected by protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis. Afterwards, the mRNA and protein expressions as well as the prognostic values of the hub genes were assessed. RESULTS: As a result, 208 up-regulated and 82 down-regulated genes were screened out. These DEGs were mainly enriched in cell cycle and metabolism-related pathways. Through PPI analysis, TOP2A, PRDM10, CDK1, AURKA, BUB1, PLK1, CDKN3, NCAPG, BUB1B and CCNA2 were selected as hub genes, which were all over-expressed in liver cancers relative to those in normal tissues, respectively. Among them, PLK1 and CCNA2 were suggested to be prognostic factors for liver carcinoma. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the present study identified several hub genes, and cell cycle and metabolism-related pathways that may play critical roles in the tumorigenesis of liver cancer. Future validation laboratory experiments are required to confirm the results.