Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40841647›Full record

ArticleCancer cell international2025

Elucidating the dynamic tumor microenvironment through deep transcriptomic analysis and therapeutic implication of MRE11 expression patterns in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Ruiqiu Chen, Chaohui Xiao, Zizheng Wang, Guineng Zeng, Shaoming Song, Gong Zhang, Lin Zhu, Penghui Yang, Rong Liu

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Article in Cancer cell international, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

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2citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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3 · Its place in the literature

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2 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Ruiqiu Chen *The First School of Clinical Medicine, Lanzhou University, No. 1, Donggangxi Rd, Chengguan District, Lanzhou, 730000, Gansu, China.
Chaohui Xiao *Department of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery, the First Medical Centre, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) General Hospital, Beijing, China.
Zizheng Wang *Key Laboratory of Digital Hepatobiliary Surgery PLA, Beijing, China.
Guineng ZengDepartment of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery, the First Medical Centre, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) General Hospital, Beijing, China.
Shaoming SongThe First School of Clinical Medicine, Lanzhou University, No. 1, Donggangxi Rd, Chengguan District, Lanzhou, 730000, Gansu, China.
Gong ZhangDepartment of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery, the First Medical Centre, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) General Hospital, Beijing, China.
Lin ZhuThe First School of Clinical Medicine, Lanzhou University, No. 1, Donggangxi Rd, Chengguan District, Lanzhou, 730000, Gansu, China.
Penghui YangDepartment of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery, the First Medical Centre, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) General Hospital, Beijing, China. ypenghuiamms@hotmail.com.
Rong LiuThe First School of Clinical Medicine, Lanzhou University, No. 1, Donggangxi Rd, Chengguan District, Lanzhou, 730000, Gansu, China. Liurong301@126.com.

Funding

Beijing AI+Health Collaborative Innovation Cultivation Z221100003522005National Key Research and Development Program of China 2021ZD0113301
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

aimThis study aims to explore the dynamic tumor microenvironment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) through deep transcriptomic analysis and to identify key regulatory genes, among which MRE11 was further validated for its immunomodulatory and prognostic significance.

methodsWe performed Summary-data-based Mendelian Randomization (SMR) analysis to identify genes causally associated with HCC and intersected these with DNA damage repair (DDR) genes, leading to the identification of MRE11. A comprehensive evaluation of MRE11 expression in HCC was conducted using transcriptomic data analysis. We collected data from 92 HCC patient samples and validated MRE11 expression differences in HCC tissues through qPCR, immunohistochemistry, and Western blotting. Publicly available single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) data and spatial transcriptomics were utilized to explore MRE11's dynamic mechanisms in the tumor microenvironment (TME) of both primary and post-immunotherapy cases. We also screened for differentially expressed genes and constructed a robust HCC prognosis model using 101 machine-learning algorithms.

resultsOur results demonstrated that high MRE11 expression is strongly associated with poor prognosis in HCC. In the primary TME, MRE11 regulates immune responses, facilitating immune evasion. Single-cell analysis revealed significant tumor heterogeneity in MRE11 high-expression groups, particularly in macrophages and malignant cells, where MRE11 regulates immune evasion and tumor progression via the cGAS-STING pathway and HGF-MET axis. Under immunotherapy, high MRE11 expression facilitated epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and extensive remodeling of the TME. Furthermore, MRE11 dynamically enhanced macrophage regulation, exhibiting immunosuppressive and tumor-invasive features. Finally, our prognostic model exhibited strong predictive accuracy across multiple datasets.

conclusionHigh MRE11 expression is crucial in regulating the immune microenvironment in HCC, fostering immune evasion and driving tumor progression. MRE11 emerges as a promising biomarker for HCC diagnosis and a potential target for personalized immunotherapy.

Indexed as

Deep Transcriptomic AtlasHepatocellular CarcinomaMachine LearningMRE11Tumor Micro-environment

Identifiers

PMID40841647
PMCPMC12369108

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