Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42329337›Full record

ArticleDiscover oncology2026

Integrated bulk and single-cell RNA sequencing reveals a prognostic neuro-mimicry signature in papillary thyroid carcinoma.

Xinyu Liu, Chengjin Mei, Jifeng Tan, Yanlan Liu, Yuyao Liu, Zhigang Zhou, Jianfu Zhao

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Article in Discover oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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5 · Who and what money

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7 authors.

Xinyu Liu *Department of Oncology, Cancer Diagnosis and Therapy Research Center, Jinan University First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou, 510630, Guangdong, China.
Chengjin Mei *Department of Oncology, Cancer Diagnosis and Therapy Research Center, Jinan University First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou, 510630, Guangdong, China.
Jifeng TanDepartment of Oncology, Cancer Diagnosis and Therapy Research Center, Jinan University First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou, 510630, Guangdong, China.
Yanlan LiuHealth Management Center, Jinan University First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou, 510630, Guangdong, China.
Yuyao LiuDepartment of Oncology, Cancer Diagnosis and Therapy Research Center, Jinan University First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou, 510630, Guangdong, China.
Zhigang ZhouChangde Hospital, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changde, 415003, Hunan, China. nhzhouzhigang@sina.com.
Jianfu ZhaoDepartment of Oncology, Cancer Diagnosis and Therapy Research Center, Jinan University First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou, 510630, Guangdong, China. zhaojianfu@jnu.edu.cn.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCancer cells can acquire neuron-like characteristics ("neural mimicry") to promote progression. However, the role of specific ion channel genes in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma (PTC) and their clinical significance remains unclear.

methodsWe included transcriptomic data from 521 PTC patients in the TCGA cohort. A neuron-specific gene set was used to screen for potential targets. We constructed a prognostic model using LASSO logistic regression. To verify the cellular origin of the signature, we performed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis on the GSE184362 dataset.

resultsWe established an 8-gene signature involving KCNN4, KCNN1, KCNT2, SNAP25, KCNK16, GABRG1, GABRG2, and GABRB2. The model demonstrated good predictive performance for lymph node metastasis, with an AUC of 0.721 (95% CI 0.677-0.765). Single-cell analysis of seven integrated tumor samples (N = 65,744 cells) confirmed that GABRB2 was specifically enriched in malignant thyrocytes (EPCAM+/KRT18+) at 200-fold higher detection rates than immune cells (20.0% vs. 0.1%, P ≈ 0), supporting tumor-intrinsic neural mimicry. High-risk patients showed immunosuppressive features with altered immune cell infiltration patterns.

conclusionThis study identifies a malignant cell-intrinsic signature for predicting PTC prognosis. Validated by single-cell data, our findings suggest that targeting ion channels may represent a potential therapeutic strategy for modulating neuro-immune interactions in thyroid cancer, pending experimental validation.

Indexed as

GABRB2GABRG1Lymph node metastasisMolecular dockingNeural mimicrySingle-cell RNA sequencingThyroid carcinoma

Identifiers

PMID42329337
PMCPMC13538332

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