Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38299418›Full record

ArticleRecent patents on anti-cancer drug discovery2025

Screening of Candidate Inflammatory Markers of Epithelial Cells in Hepatocellular Carcinoma based on Integration Analysis of TCGA/ICGC Databases and Single-cell Sequencing.

Zupin Huang, Zhuokai Li, Xinliang Lv, Wei Tan

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Article in Recent patents on anti-cancer drug discovery, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
1.3field-weighted citation impact, top 22% 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

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

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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

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Zupin HuangDepartment of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, The Affiliated Cangnan Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, 325800, China.ORCID 0009-0009-8012-9851
Zhuokai LiDepartment of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Lishui Central Hospital, Lishui, Zhejiang, 323000, China.
Xinliang LvDepartment of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Lishui Central Hospital, Lishui, Zhejiang, 323000, China.ORCID 0000-0001-8177-0442
Wei TanDepartment of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Lishui Central Hospital, Lishui, Zhejiang, 323000, China.ORCID 0000-0003-2769-2820
Lishui Central Hospital · CNWenzhou Medical University · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is closely linked to inflammatory reactions, with chronic liver diseases acting as major risk factors. In the inflammatory microenvironment, repeated damage and repair of liver cells lead to genetic mutations, abnormal proliferation, and tumorigenesis.

objectiveThis study aimed to investigate the expression profile of specific cell clusters under inflammatory stimulation in HCC and identify potential therapeutic drugs.

methodsComprehensive analysis of HCC transcriptome data and single-cell sequencing data from TCGA, ICGC, and GEO databases was conducted to explore the specific molecular mechanisms of epithelial cells. Virtual screening of natural compounds in the ZINC database and in vitro cell experiments were performed to identify drugs that regulate the expression of inflammatory factors in epithelial cells.

resultsAnalysis of the single-cell dataset revealed cell clusters closely associated with HCC, notably Epithelial cells, Hepatocytes, MSC, and iPS cells, with Epithelial cells playing a pivotal role in HCC development. Further investigation of TCGA data unveiled 83 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to inflammatory responses in HCC. Intersection analysis of DEGs in epithelial cells and HCC DEGs identified 12 common DEGs, including ADRM1, ATP2B1, FZD5, GPC3, KIF1B, KLF6, LY6E, MET, NAMPT, SERPINE1, SPHK1, and SRI. Prognostic analysis revealed that CCL7, GPR132, ITGB8, PTAFR, SELL, and VIP were influential in the survival prognosis of HCC. A prognostic model based on the expression levels of these genes demonstrated an increased risk of HCC associated with higher differential expression of inflammatory response genes. Additionally, molecular dynamics simulations indicated that compounds NADH and Deferoxamine formed stable docking models with the inflammatory protein VIP, suggesting their potential as candidates for targeted therapy.

conclusionInflammatory factors CCL7, GPR132, ITGB8, PTAFR, SELL, and VIP influence the inflammatory cascade response in HCC epithelial cells, and their expression correlates with the survival prognosis of HCC patients. Interfering with VIP expression effectively suppresses proliferation, migration, and invasion of HCC cells, as well as inhibiting the occurrence of inflammatory cascade reactions, thus slowing down the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma. Furthermore, compounds NADH and Deferoxamine have the potential to target and bind to the inflammatory protein VIP, highlighting their relevance in potential HCC treatment.

Indexed as

Biomarkers, TumorCarcinoma, HepatocellularEpithelial CellsInflammationLiver NeoplasmsDatabases, GeneticGene Expression ProfilingGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansSingle-Cell AnalysisTranscriptomeTumor MicroenvironmentBiomarkers, Tumorbioinformaticsepithelial cellsHepatocellular carcinomainflammatory responsesingle-cell analysisVIP.

Identifiers

PMID38299418
OpenAlexW4391448139

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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.