The Oncogenic Role of Human Microcephalin Gene Revealed by Pan-Cancer Analysis

Abstract

AbstractThe human gene microcephalin (MCPH1) plays a key role in DNA damage-induced cellular responses and chromosome condensation. Recent clinical studies proposedMCPH1as a tumor suppressor gene in lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, and breast cancer, yet its roles remain poorly understood in other types of tumors. Pan-cancer analyses ofMCPH1are urgently required to help us understand the potential molecular functions ofMCPH1in other types of tumors. Here, we used several bioinformatic database and tools, including TCGA, GEO, ONCOMINE, and Human Protein Atlas to investigate the role ofMCPH1in 33 tumor types. We found that the expression ofMCPH1in tumor cases and normal cases were significantly different, and the higher expression ofMCPH1generally predicted poor overall survival for tumor patients, such as acute myeloid leukemia, liver hepatocellular carcinoma, and pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Meanwhile, lower expression of theMCPH1gene was related to poor OS prognosis for KIRC and gastric cancer. Moreover, the expression level ofMCPH1was highly associated with the immune microenvironment. Our result provides some fresh light into the oncogenic roles ofMCPH1in various human cancers and revealed thatMCPH1may be a potential diagnostic and prognostic marker in LAML, PAAD, and gastric cancer.