Identification of METTL14 in Kidney Renal Clear Cell Carcinoma Using Bioinformatics Analysis

Qian Wang1, Hao Zhang2, Quanbing Chen3

  • 1Department of Oncology Surgery, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.

Disease Markers
|January 25, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Methyltransferase-like 14 (METTL14) mRNA is downregulated in kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC), correlating with advanced stages. Lower METTL14 expression indicates poorer patient survival, suggesting its potential as a KIRC biomarker.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC) is a major subtype of renal cell carcinoma with poor prognosis.
  • N6-methyladenosine (m6A) epitranscriptional modification is crucial in regulating gene expression and is implicated in disease progression.
  • METTL14, a key enzyme in m6A modification, warrants investigation in KIRC.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the expression of METTL14 mRNA in KIRC tissues and its correlation with clinical and pathological features.
  • To explore the potential regulatory network involving METTL14, microRNAs (miRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs) in KIRC.
  • To evaluate METTL14 as a potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for KIRC.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of METTL14 mRNA expression using GTExPortal and TCGAportal.
  • Verification of METTL14 protein localization in KIRC tissues via Human Protein Atlas.
  • Identification of KIRC-related miRNAs using OncoLnc and starBase.
  • Prediction of miRNA-interacting circRNAs using circBank.
  • Construction of a METTL14-miRNA-circRNA interaction network.

Main Results:

  • METTL14 mRNA expression was significantly lower in KIRC tissues compared to normal kidney tissues.
  • Reduced METTL14 mRNA levels correlated with advanced clinical and pathological stages of KIRC.
  • A potential regulatory network suggests circRNAs may act as miRNA sponges to influence METTL14 expression and KIRC progression.
  • METTL14 mRNA expression was negatively correlated with KIRC stage and positively correlated with overall patient survival.

Conclusions:

  • METTL14 mRNA is downregulated in KIRC and its expression level is associated with disease progression.
  • circRNAs may play a role in regulating METTL14 expression through miRNA sponging in KIRC.
  • METTL14 has significant potential as a clinical biomarker for KIRC diagnosis and prognosis.

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