A-kinase interacting protein 1, a potential biomarker associated with advanced tumor features and CXCL1/2 in prostate cancer

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the correlation of A-kinase interacting protein 1 (AKIP1) with chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 1 (CXCL1) and CXCL2, as well as their associations with clinical characteristics and prognosis in prostate cancer patients. Methods: A total of 248 eligible prostate cancer patients who underwent surgery were consecutively recruited, and tumor tissues were collected during the surgery. AKIP1, CXCL1, and CXCL2 expression in tumor tissues were assessed by immunohistochemistry. Disease-free survival and overall survival were recorded, and the median follow-up time was 27 months. Results: The proportion of patients with AKIP1, CXCL1, and CXCL2 high expression was 56.5%, 63.7%, and 56.9%, respectively. Additionally, AKIP1 expression positively correlated with CXCL1 expression ( P<0.001) and CXCL2 expression ( P<0.001), and CXCL1 expression was positively associated with CXCL2 expression ( P<0.001). Furthermore, AKIP1 expression positively correlated with pathological T stage ( P<0.001) and pathological N stage ( P=0.003). CXCL1 expression was positively associated with pathological T stage ( P<0.001) and pathological N stage ( P<0.001) as well. However, the CXCL2 expression only positively correlated with pathological T stage ( P=0.002). Also, AKIP1 high expression correlated with worse disease-free survival ( P=0.049) and OS ( P=0.013), and CXCL1 high expression was associated with unfavorable disease-free survival ( P=0.023) but not overall survival ( P=0.052). CXCL2 expression was not correlated with disease-free survival ( P=0.083) or overall survival ( P=0.065). Multivariate Cox’s regression disclosed that AKIP1 high expression independently predicted worse overall survival ( P=0.009). Conclusion: AKIP1 positively associates with CXCL1/2 and is a potential biomarker for disease monitoring as well as prognosis in prostate cancer.