Prognostic potential of N6-methyladenosine methylation-associated genes in lung adenocarcinoma

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), recognized as one of the most lethal variants of lung cancer, presents significant treatment challenges and is associated with a poor prognosis. In this study, we used data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) to investigate the functional implications of N6-methyladenosine (m6A)-related genes in LUAD.

The clinical characteristics and RNA-sequencing data of patients with LUAD were obtained from the TCGA-LUAD database. Through a comprehensive analysis, we identified the genes related to m6A modifications and with prognostic value for patients with LUAD.

In this study, we found that 10 out of 13 m6A genes (including WTAP, ZC3H13, FTO, RBM15, METTL14, METTL3, HNRNPC, KIAA1429, YTHDF1, and YTHDF2) exhibited differential expression in patients with LUAD. Our objective was to determine the correlation between m6A methylation-related genes. Notably, coexpression patterns were observed between FTO and YTHDC2, while RBM15 demonstrated a significant positive correlation with the reader gene KIAA1429. In contrast, a negative correlation was identified between the methylation eraser FTO and the reader HNRNPC. We retrieved expression profiles of these genes from samples available in TCGA database. Through multivariate Cox regression analysis, we identified three m6A methylation-related genes (HNRNPC, KIAA1429, and RBM15) and included them in a prognostic model.

In patients diagnosed with LUAD, there is a significant correlation between m6A-related gene expression and tumor classification. Our study constructed a novel signature associated with m6A modifications, which can serve as a promising prognostic indicator for LUAD. These findings may provide valuable insights into diagnosis and therapeutic strategies for patients with LUAD.