Background: The DNA binding protein NABP2 (nucleic acid binding protein 2) is a member of the SSB (single-stranded DNA-binding) protein family, which is involved in DNA damage repair. Its prognostic significance and relationship with immune infiltration in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), however, remain unknown.
Methods: The purpose of this study was to estimate the prognostic value of NABP2 and to investigate its possible immune function in HCC. By applying multiple bioinformatics methods, we gathered and analysed data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Cancer Cell Lineage Encyclopedia (CCLE), and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) to investigate the potential oncogenic and cancer-promoting role of NABP2, including the differential expression, prognostic value, immune cell infiltration association, and drug sensitivity of NABP2 in HCC. Immunohistochemistry and Western blotting were used to validate the expression of NABP2 in HCC. The knockdown of NABP2 expression by siRNA was further used to validate its role in hepatocellular carcinoma.
Results: Our findings indicated that NABP2 was overexpressed in HCC samples and was related to poor survival, clinical stage, and tumour grade in HCC patients. Analysis of functional enrichment indicated that NABP2 was potentially involved in the cell cycle, DNA replication, G2M checkpoint, E2F targets, apoptosis, P53 signalling, TGFA signalling via NF-κB, and so on. NABP2 was shown to be significantly linked to immune cell infiltration and immunological checkpoints in HCC. Analyses of drug sensitivity predict a number of drugs that could potentially be used to target NABP2. Moreover, in vitro experiments verified the promoting effect of NABP2 on the migration and proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells.
Conclusion: Based on these findings, NABP2 appears to be a candidate biomarker for HCC prognosis and immunotherapy.
Keywords: bioinformatics analysis, NABP2, hepatocellular carcinoma, prognostic value, immune infiltration