Hepatoma-derived growth factor and non-coding RNA network in ovarian cancer patients

Ovarian cancer (OC) remains the most lethal gynecologic malignancy due to late diagnosis and limited effective biomarkers. Hepatoma-derived growth factor (HDGF) has emerged as an oncogene implicated in tumor progression, yet its regulation and clinical potential in OC remains underexplored. Recent evidence suggests that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) may modulate oncogenic pathways through competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks.

Fifty ovarian cancer and fifty normal ovarian tissue samples were analyzed for HDGF, miR-345-5p, and LINC00839 expression using qRT-PCR. Bioinformatic tools were employed to predict RNA-RNA interactions and reconstruct a ceRNA network. Statistical analyses examined expression correlations and diagnostic performance via ROC curve. HDGF and LINC00839 were significantly upregulated, while miR-345-5p was downregulated in OC tissues (p < 0.001). HDGF expression correlated positively with LINC00839 (r = 0.70) and inversely with miR-345-5p (r = -0.58), suggesting a regulatory axis where LINC00839 sponges miR-345-5p to derepress HDGF. Elevated HDGF levels were associated with larger tumor size, advanced FIGO stage, and metastasis. ROC analysis revealed that HDGF serum level (AUC = 0.88) has promising diagnostic potential, albeit lower than CA-125 and HE4.

Our study highlights the LINC00839-miR-345-5p-HDGF axis as a key regulatory network in ovarian cancer. HDGF may serve as a clinically relevant biomarker for disease progression, while LINC00839 and miR-345-5p represent promising therapeutic targets. These findings provide a foundation for future investigations into ceRNA-based diagnostics and treatments in OC.