Three-gene prognostic biomarkers for seminoma identified by weighted gene co-expression network analysis

Chen, Hualin; Chen, Gang; Pan, Yang; Jin, Xiaoxiang

Testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs) are common in young males, and seminoma accounts for a large proportion of TGCTs. However, there are limited records on the exploration of novel biomarkers for seminoma. Hence, we aimed to identify new biomarkers associated with overall survival in seminoma. mRNA-seq and clinical traits of TGCTs were downloaded from UCSC XENA and analyzed by weighted gene co-expression network analysis. After intersection with differentially expressed genes in GSE8607, common genes were subjected to protein-protein interaction (PPI) network construction and enrichment analyses. Then, the top 10 common genes were investigated by Kaplan–Meier (KM) survival analyses and univariate Cox regression analyses. Ultimately, TYROBP, CD68, and ITGAM were considered three prognostic biomarkers in seminoma. Based on correlation analysis between these genes and immune infiltrates, we suggest that the three biomarkers influence the survival of seminoma patients, possibly through regulating the infiltration of immune cells. In conclusion, our study demonstrated that TYROBP, CD68, and ITGAM could be regarded as prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for seminoma patients.