Expression and significance of the ABAT gene in hepatocellular carcinoma:An analysis based on data mining

Objective To investigate the expression and significance of the ABAT gene in hepatocellular carcinoma ( HCC) using relateddatabases. Methods The Oncomine database and GEPIA were used to analyze the expression of ABAT in HCC tissue. GEPIA was used toinvestigate the correlation of ABAT mRNA with the survival time and pathological stage of HCC patients. The MethHC database was used toanalyze the methylation level of ABAT promoter region. The String database was used to analyze the network of proteins interacting withABAT protein. The Human Protein Atlas was used to analyze the expression of ABAT protein in HCC tissue and the influence of the proteinexpression of ABAT on prognosis. Results The mRNA expression of ABAT in HCC tissue was significantly lower than that in normal livertissue; patients with lower mRNA expression tended to have a poorer prognosis ( log-rank, P = 0. 002 1) and a higher degree of malignancy ( P = 0. 002 34) . The protein expression of ABAT in HCC tissue was significantly lower than that in normal liver tissue, and patients withlower protein expression tended to have a poorer prognosis ( log-rank, P = 2. 14 × 10-3) . The methylation level of ABAT promoter region inHCC tissue was significantly higher than that in normal liver tissue ( P < 0. 005) . The proteins interacting with ABAT included ALDH1 A3, ALDH9 A1, ALDH3 A2, GAD1, and GAD2, which might be involved in cell functions such as cell apoptosis, redox, and neurotransmittersecretion. Conclusion Data mining of tumor gene databases shows that there are low levels of mRNA and protein expression of ABAT inHCC tissue, which is associated with patient's survival time. At present, database mining can provide a reference for the diagnosis andprognosis evaluation of HCC and a theoretical basis for tumor research in the future.