Clinical significance of expression of GPX4 in gastric cancer

Objective To investigate the expression of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) in gastric cancer and to analyze its clinical significance. Methods The expression of GPX4 mRNA in common tumors was analyzed based on Oncomine and Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) databases, and its expression in gastric cancer tissues and relationship with prognosis were also analyzed. The RNA sequencing data of 1178 gastric cancer samples in The Cancer Geneome Atlas (TCGA) database were obtained via cBioPortal to analyze the mutations of the GPX4 gene and their relationship with prognosis. Proteins interacting with GPX4 were predicted using the String database. Results A total of 459 studies on GPX4 gene in common tumors and normal tissues were collected from the Oncomine database, 22 of which showed significantly differential GPX4 expression (P 0.05). Analysis of RNA sequencing results in the TCGA database revealed that GPX4 gene mutations occurred in 25 of 1178 gastric cancer samples, with a total mutation rate of 2.1%. Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed that there was no significant correlation between GPX4 gene mutation and OS or PFS (P>0.05). Proteins such as GSR, GSS, GGT1/5/6/7, GSTO2, GRSF1, and SOD1/2 had obvious interactions with GPX4 (P=1.94×10-7). Conclusion The analysis of multiple tumor gene databases shows that the GPX4 gene has a low mutation rate in gastric cancer tissues, and its high mRNA expression is associated with a poor prognosis. Our findings provide an important theoretical basis for further exploration of the role for GPX4 in the development of gastric cancer. Key words: Glutathione peroxidase; Gastric cancer; Database