Identification and verification of 3 key genes associated with survival and prognosis of patients with colon adenocarcinoma via integrated bioinformatics analysis

Abstract

BackgroundColorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most lethal malignancy in the world, wherein colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) is the most prevalent type of CRC. Exploring biomarkers is important for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of COAD. MethodsWe used GEO2R and Venn online software for differential gene screening analysis. Hub genes were screened via STRING and Cytoscape, following Gene Ontology and KEGG enrichment analysis. Finally, survival analysis and expression validation were performed via UALCAN online software, real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry. ResultsIn this study, we screened 323 common differentially expressed genes from four GSE datasets. Furthermore, four hub genes were selected for survival correlation analysis and expression level verification, three of which were shown to be statistically significant. ConclusionOur study suggests that SERPINE1, SPP1 and TIMP1 may be biomarkers closely related to the prognosis of CRC patients.