Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34195096›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in oncology2021

Interferon Regulatory Factor 4 Correlated With Immune Cells Infiltration Could Predict Prognosis for Patients With Lung Adenocarcinoma.

Xuanzong Li, Shujun Zhai, Jianbo Zhang, Dai Zhang, Shijiang Wang, Linlin Wang, Jinming Yu

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in oncology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
1.2field-weighted citation impact, top 21% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 18 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Interferon regulatory factors orchestrate CD8International journal of molecular medicine · 2026
    Review
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. CompoundAnimal nutrition (Zhongguo xu mu shou yi xue hui) · 2024
    Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Xuanzong LiDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, China.
Shujun ZhaiHealth Management Center, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, China.
Jianbo ZhangDepartment of Pathology, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute, Shandong First Medical University and Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China.
Dai ZhangDepartment of Radiation Oncology, School of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, China.
Shijiang WangDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute, Shandong First Medical University and Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China.
Linlin WangDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute, Shandong First Medical University and Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China.
Jinming YuDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, China.
Shandong First Medical University · CNShandong Tumor Hospital · CNShandong Provincial Hospital · CNShandong University · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundImmune related interferon regulatory factor 4 (IRF4) is a member of the IRF family, whereas the clinical significance and possible role of IRF4 in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the role of IRF4 in predicting the prognosis of LUAD patients.

methodsUsing The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and our immunohistochemical (IHC) cohort, we analyzed the correlation between IRF4 expression and clinical characteristics, and the prognostic value of IRF4 was also evaluated in LUAD. The potential biological functions of IRF4 in LUAD were analyzed by Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA). The relationship between IRF4 and immune cell infiltration were evaluated by TISIDB database and our own IHC cohort. In addition, an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) treated cohort from Gene Expression Omnibus database was used to determine the role of IRF4 in LUAD patients with immunotherapy.

resultsWe found that either mRNA or protein expression level of IRF4 was significantly higher in LUAD than in normal tissues (P < 0.001). The elevate in IRF4 expression in LUAD was significantly associated with the earlier clinical stage (P = 0.002). Patients with LUAD and IRF4 high expression correlated with significant longer overall survival in both TCGA database (P < 0.05) and our IHC-cohort (P = 0.001). Our results also demonstrated that IRF4 could serve as an independent favorable prognostic factor in patients with LUAD. GSEA analysis indicated that high IRF4 expression group enriched with several immune-related pathways, such as B cell receptor signaling pathway, T cell receptor signaling pathway and cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction signaling pathway. In LUAD, IRF4 positively correlated with several different immune infiltrations including various B cells, CD8+ T cells and CD4+ T cells both in mRNA and protein levels. Additionally, we found that the expression of IRF4 was positively associated with PD-1 and PD-L1 mRNA expression levels, and IRF4 high expression predicted moderate better survival in LUAD with immunotherapy (P = 0.071).

conclusionsOur results suggested that IRF4 was associated with higher B cells and T cells infiltration levels and might be a favorable prognostic biomarker in LUAD patients, whereas the potential prognostic role of IRF4 in ICI-treated patients needed further exploration.

Indexed as

B-cellsIRF4lung adenocarcinomaprognosistumor-infiltrating lymphocyte

Identifiers

PMID34195096
PMCPMC8236722
OpenAlexW3171147552

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.