Comprehensive Analysis of the Expression and Clinical Significance of THO Complex Members in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

BACKGROUND: THO complex members (THOCs) are essential for mRNA processing, transcription elongation, mRNA export and genome integrity, which may be associated with tumor. However, the significance of THO complex members in Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not been clarified. METHODS: In this study, we investigated expression levels, clinicopathological correlation, diagnostic and prognostic value, disease associations, co-expression network, functional enrichment, genetic variation, drug sensitivity, molecular targets, and immune infiltration of THOCs in HCC using UALCAN, ICGC, HPA, Kaplan–Meier Plotter, The Open Targets Platform database, GeneMANIA, WebGestalt, GSCALite, LinkedOmics, TIMER. Meanwhile, the mRNA expression levels of THOCs in HCC were verified by qRT-PCR. RESULTS: THOCs were significantly up-regulated at the transcription level in HCC, and overexpression of THOCs was correlated with clinicopathological features. THOCs had potential diagnostic and prognostic value for HCC. THOCs could participate in apoptosis, regulate cell cycle, and were also involved in DNA damage response. Important cancer-related signaling pathways such as EMT, RAS/MAPK pathway and RKT pathway were also related to THOCs expression. In addition, the expression level of THOC1/2/6/7 was negatively correlated with drug resistance. And miRNA, kinase, and transcription factor targets associated with THOCs have been identified. Meanwhile, THOCs were associated with immune infiltration in HCC. CONCLUSION: Our study revealed that THO complex members have important clinical significance for HCC and have potential clinical utility in diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.