Research Paper Volume 16, Issue 1 pp 285—298

MAGE-A11 is a potential prognostic biomarker and immunotherapeutic target in gastric cancer

Zhi-Wen Wang1,3, *, , Qi-Ying Yu2, *, , Meng-Jiao Xu4, , Chuan-Yi Zhou6, , Jia-Peng Li1,5, , Xing-Hua Liao1, ,

  • 1 Institute of Biology and Medicine, College of Life Sciences and Health, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430081, Hubei, P.R. China
  • 2 Central Laboratory, Tumor Hospital Affiliated to Nantong University, Nantong 226361, Jiangsu, P.R. China
  • 3 Key Laboratory of Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases, Yueyang Vocational Technical College, Yueyang 414006, Hunan, P.R. China
  • 4 Zhaoyuan Linglong Central Health Center, Zhaoyuan 265400, Shandong, P.R. China
  • 5 College of Science, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430081, Hubei, P.R. China
  • 6 Yueyang People’s Hospital, Yueyang Hospital Affiliated to Hunan Normal University Neoplasm Ward 1, Yueyang 414000, Hunan, P.R. China
* Equal contribution

Received: July 12, 2023       Accepted: November 15, 2023       Published: January 4, 2024      

https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.205368
How to Cite

Copyright: © 2024 Wang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Abstract

Gastric cancer poses a serious threat to human health and affects the digestive system. The lack of early symptoms and a dearth of effective identification methods make diagnosis difficult, with many patients only receiving a definitive diagnosis at a malignant stage, causing them to miss out on optimal therapeutic interventions. Melanoma-associated antigen-A (MAGE-A) is part of the MAGE family and falls under the cancer/testis antigen (CTA) category. The MAGE-A subfamily plays a significant role in tumorigenesis, proliferation and migration. The expression, prognosis and function of MAGE-A family members in GC, however, remain unclear. Our research and screening have shown that MAGE-A11 was highly expressed in GC tissues and was associated with poor patient prognosis. Additionally, MAGE-A11 functioned as an independent prognostic factor in GC through Cox regression analysis, and its expression showed significant correlation with both tumour immune cell infiltration and responsiveness to immunotherapy. Our data further indicated that MAGE-A11 regulated GC cell proliferation and migration. Subsequently, our findings propose that MAGE-A11 may operate as a prognostic factor, having potential as an immunotherapy target for GC.

Abbreviations

MAGE-A: melanoma associated antigens-a; CTA: cancer/testis antigens; DEGs: differentially expressed genes; GO: gene ontology.