Programmed death 1, ligand 1 and 2 correlated genes and their association with mutation, immune infiltration and clinical outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma
Qiuju Sheng, Wenyue Tian, Xiaoguang Dou, Chong Zhang, Yanwei Li, Chao Han, Yaoxin Fan, Pingping Lai, Yang Ding
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The exact regulation network of programmed death 1 (PD-1), programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1), and programmed death ligand 2 (PD-L2) signaling in immune escape is largely unknown. We aimed to describe the gene expression profiles related to PD-1 as well as its ligands PD-L1 and PD-L2, thus deciphering their possible biological processes in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). AIM: To find the possible mechanism of function of PD-1, PD-L1, and PD-L2 in HCC. METHODS: Based on the expression data of HCC from The Cancer Genome Atlas, the PD-1/PD-L1/PD-L2 related genes were screened by weighted correlation network analysis method and the biological processes of certain genes were enriched. Relation of PD1/PD-L1/PD-L2 with immune infiltration and checkpoints was investigated by co-expression analysis. The roles of PD-1/PD-L1/PD-L2 in determination of clinical outcome were also analyzed. RESULTS: = 0.005 for both), but there was no significant correlation between their expression and HCC patient survival. CONCLUSION: Mutations of key genes influence PD-1, PD-L1, and PD-L2 expression. PD-1, PD-L1, and PD-L2 related genes participate in T cell activation, cell adhesion, and other important lymphocyte effects. The finding that PD-1/PD-L1/PD-L2 is related to immune infiltration and other immune checkpoints would expand our understanding of promising anti-PD-1 immunotherapy.