Correlation of NUF2 Overexpression with Poorer Patient Survival in Multiple Cancers

PURPOSE: NUF2 has been implicated in multiple cancers recently, suggesting NUF2 may play a role in the common tumorigenesis process. In this study, we aim to perform comprehensive meta-analysis of NUF2 expression in the cancer types included in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: RNA-sequencing data in 31 cancer types in the TCGA data and 11 independent datasets were used to examine NUF2 expression. Silencing NUF2 using targeting shRNAs in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell lines was used to evaluate NUF2’s role in HCC in vitro and in vivo. RESULTS: NUF2 up-regulation is significantly observed in 23 out of the 31 cancer types in the TCGA datasets and validated in 13 major cancer types using 11 independent datasets. NUF2 overexpression was clinically important as high NUF2 was significantly associated with tumor stages in eight different cancers. High NUF2 was also associated with significantly poorer patient overall survival and disease-free survival in eight and six cancers, respectively. We proceeded to validate NUF2 overexpression and its negative association with overall survival at the protein level in an independent cohort of 40 HCC patients. Compared to the non-targeting controls, NUF2 knockdown cells showed significantly reduced ability to grow, migrate into a scratch wound and invade the 8 μm porous membrane in vitro. Moreover, NUF2 knockdown cells also formed significantly smaller tumors than control cells in mouse xenograft assays in vivo. CONCLUSION: NUF2 up-regulation is a common feature of many cancers. The prognostic potential and functional impact of NUF2 up-regulation warrant further studies.