Characterization of molecular subtypes based on chromatin regulators and identification of the role of NPAS2 in lung adenocarcinoma

BACKGROUND: Chromatin regulators (CRs) are critical epigenetic modifiers and have been reported to play critical roles during the progression of various tumors, but their role in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) has not been comprehensively studied. METHODS: Differential expression and univariate Cox regression analyses were conducted to identify the prognostic CRs. Consensus clustering was applied to classify the subtypes of LUAD based on prognostic CRs. LASSO-multivariate Cox regression method was used for construction of a prognostic signature and development of chromatin regulator-related gene index (CRGI). The capacity of CRGI to distinguish survival was evaluated via Kaplan–Meier method in multiple datasets. Relationship between CRGI and tumor microenvironment (TME) was evaluated. Additionally, clinical variables and CRGI were incorporated to create a nomogram. The role of the prognostic gene NPAS2 in LUAD was elucidated via clinical samples validation and a series of in vitro and in vivo experiments. RESULTS: Two subtypes of LUAD were classified based on 46 prognostic CRs via consensus clustering which had significantly different survival and TME. A prognostic signature consisting of six CRs (MOCS, PBK, CBX3, A1CF, NPAS2, and CTCFL) was developed and proved to be an effective survival predictor in multiple independent datasets. The prognostic signature was also demonstrated to be an indicator of TME and sensitivity to immunotherapy and chemotherapy. The nomogram was suggested to be a simple tool that can predict survival accurately. Clinical samples show that NPAS2 is highly expressed in LUAD tissues, and in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that inhibition of NPAS2 impeded malignant progression of LUAD cells. CONCLUSIONS: Our study comprehensively unveiled the functions of CRs in LUAD, developed a classifier to predict survival and response to treatments, and suggested that NPAS2 promoted LUAD progression for the first time. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13148-023-01486-w.