Classification of Glioblastoma Associated with Immune Checkpoints and Tumor Microenvironment based on Immunogenomic Profiling

Abstract

Background: Immune microenvironment is involved in tumor initiation and progression, and its effect on glioblastoma (GBM) is still unknown. Object: We sought to investigate the association between immune status and GBM. Methods: Transcriptome data and the relevant clinical data were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases, and we identified two immune subtypes based on 29 immune-associated gene sets. Results: Through single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA), we found that the high-immunity subtype had the most tumor-infiltrating immune cells and immune checkpoint molecules in GBM patients. Furthermore, we could more effectively identify immune signature pathways in GBM. Conclusion: After validation with the GEO dataset, we conclude that the identified GBM high-immune subtypes may be amenable to the application of novel immune therapy for GBM.