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Abstract

Global incidence of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma is rising. This study investigated the molecular mechanism of CSCC and screened genes that could serve as biomarkers, providing a theoretical framework for pathogenesis and drug development research. We examined differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between normal tissue specimens and CSCC patient tissues using microarray data analysis.. Also, signal pathway and functional enrichment analysis were employed for target genes to rule out the specific genes that display close association with CSCC with the potential to serve as unique CSCC biomarkers. Two datasets GSE66359 and GSE45216 were used in the differential expression analysis. Results revealed the upregulation of potential candidate genes like P13, MMP1, A100A12, and KRT16 while downregulation of rf132, EGR3, PAMR1, LRP4, and KRT2. Verifying these genes demonstrated that KRT16 and EGR3 had obvious differential expression patterns. Further analyses showed that EGR3 was the only gene that exhibited a similar differential pattern in CSCC. Thus, we infer that EGR3 is closely related to the occurrence and development of CSCC, and it has the potential to function as the candidate biomarker gene against CSCC and facilitate subsequent diagnosis and treatment in clinical management.