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Common Gene and Immune Cell Dynamics Across Oral Carcinogenesis: A Multi-Stage Transcriptomic Analysis
Zixuan Liao1, Xiaofei Li2, Qingchen Ma2
1Department of Stomatology, Jinling Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Oral Diseases
|October 30, 2025
Summary
WDR66 is upregulated in oral cancer progression and linked to CD4+ T cell dysfunction. This study identifies WDR66 as a potential biomarker for oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and its immune microenvironment.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Immunology
- Genomics
Background:
- The progression from normal oral tissue to oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) involves complex molecular and immunological changes.
- Understanding these alterations is crucial for identifying diagnostic and therapeutic targets.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of WDR66 and immune cell infiltration in the progression of oral lesions to OSCC.
- To identify potential molecular markers associated with oral cancer development.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of four transcriptomic datasets using GEO2R and the R package "IOBR" to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and immune infiltration.
- Two-sample Mendelian randomization (TSMR) was used to assess causal relationships between immune cells, genes, and oral cancer in 11 cohorts.
Main Results:
- WDR66 was the sole consistently upregulated DEG across normal oral tissue (ONT), oral dysplasia (OD), leukoplakia-oral precancerous lesion (OPL), and OSCC (p < 0.001).
- Neutrophils and CD4+ effector memory T cells (Tem) showed significant correlation with OSCC and OD.
- TSMR confirmed a causal link between WDR66 and OSCC, and between CD4+ T cells and OSCC, suggesting immune cell dysfunction.
Conclusions:
- WDR66 expression is closely associated with CD4+ T cell dysfunction in OSCC.
- WDR66 may serve as a potential biomarker for oral cancer progression and immune alterations.
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