Prognostic Biomarker KIF18A and Its Correlations With Immune Infiltrates and Mitosis in Glioma

Background: Glioma is globally recognised as one of the most frequently occurring primary malignant brain tumours, making the identification of glioma biomarkers critically significant. The protein KIF18A (Kinesin Family Member 18A) is a member of the kinesin superfamily of microtubule-associated molecular motors and has been shown to participate in cell cycle and mitotic metaphase and anaphase. This is the first investigation into the expression of KIF18A and its prognostic value, potential biological functions, and effects on the immune system and mitosis in glioma patients. Methods: Gene expression and clinicopathological analysis, enrichment analysis, and immune infiltration analysis were based on data obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), with additional bioinformatics analyses performed. Statistical analysis was conducted in R software. Clinical samples were used to evaluate the expression of KIF18A via immunohistochemical staining. In addition, the expression level of KIF18A was validated on U87 cell line. Results: Our results highlighted that KIF18A plays a key role as an independent prognostic factor in patients with glioma. KIF18A was highly expressed in glioma tissues, and KIF18A expression was associated with age, World Health Organization grade, isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) status, 1p/19q codeletion, primary therapy outcome, and overall survival (OS). Enrichment analysis revealed that KIF18A is closely correlated with the cell cycle and mitosis. Single sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) analysis revealed that KIF18A expression was related to the immune microenvironment. The increased expression of KIF18A in glioma was verified in clinical samples and U87 cell line. Conclusion: The identification of KIF18A as a new biomarker for glioma could help elucidate how changes in the glioma cell and immune microenvironment promote glioma malignancy. With further analysis, KIF18A may serve as an independent prognostic indicator for human glioma.