Genetic Variation in DEAD-Box Helicase 20 as a Putative Marker of Recurrence in Propensity-Matched Colon Cancer Patients

Abstract

Variants of the DEAD-Box Helicase 20 (DDX20), one of the microRNAs (miRNAs) machinery genes, can modulate miRNA/target gene expressions and, hence, influence cancer susceptibility and prognosis. Here, we aimed to unravel the association of DDX20 rs197412 T/C variant with colon cancer risk and/or prognosis in paired samples of 122 colon cancer and non-cancer tissue specimens by TaqMan allelic discrimination analysis. Structural/functional bioinformatic analyses were carried out, followed by a meta-analysis. We found that the T allele was more frequent in cancer tissues compared to control tissues (60.2% vs. 35.7%, p < 0.001). Furthermore, the T variant was highly frequent in primary tumors with evidence of recurrence (73% vs. 47.5%, p < 0.001). Genetic association models, adjusted by age and sex, revealed that the T allele was associated with a higher risk of developing colon cancer under heterozygote (T/C vs. C/C: OR = 2.35, 95%CI = 1.25–4.44, p < 0.001), homozygote (T/T vs. C/C: OR = 7.6, 95%CI = 3.5–16.8, p < 0.001), dominant (T/C-T/T vs. C/C: OR = 3.4, 95%CI = 1.87–8.5, p < 0.001), and recessive (T/T vs. C/C-T/C: OR = 4.42, 95%CI = 2.29–8.54, p = 0.001) models. Kaplan–Meier survival curves showed the shift in the C > T allele to be associated with poor disease-free survival. After adjusting covariates using a multivariate cox regression model, patients harboring C > T somatic mutation were 3.5 times more likely to develop a recurrence (p < 0.001). A meta-analysis of nine studies (including ours) showed a higher risk of CRC (81%) in subjects harboring the T/T genotype than in T/C + C/C genotypes, supporting the potential clinical utility of the specified study variant as a biomarker for risk stratification in CRC cases. However, results were not significant in non-colorectal cancers. In conclusion, the DDX20 rs197412 variant is associated with increased colon cancer risk and a higher likelihood of recurrence in the study population.

Angio-Long Noncoding RNA MALAT1 (rs3200401) and MIAT (rs1061540) Gene Variants in Ovarian Cancer

“…Furthermore, the DNA integrity was checked by running 100 ng/sample on a 1.0% agarose gel electrophoresis. Genotyping for the selected variants was assayed using real-time PCR allelic discrimination technology, as described in our previous works [34,35,[84][85][86]. Briefly, PCR reactions were run blindly to the types of samples in a final volume of 25 µL, containing gDNA (20 ng), TaqMan Universal PCR Master Mix, and Taq-Man SNP Genotyping Assay Mix, according to the standard protocols.…”

“…Interestingly, in their review article, Minotti et al stated that MALAT1and MIAT presented a higher number than expected of function-impacting somatic mutations, and they confirmed that the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of lncRNAs might play a role in carcinogenesis, supporting their use as genetic biomarkers [28]. Several studies have highlighted the association between the genetic variants and SNPs that occur in regions transcribed into the lncRNAs and increase the risk and/or progression of cancers [29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36]. These SNPs may influence lncRNA regulation and the process of splicing and/or stability, resulting in the modification of its interacting partners, and thus they could be correlated with tumorigenesis [37][38][39].…”

DDX20: A Multifunctional Complex Protein

“…As a novel human member of the DEAD-box family with ATP-dependent RNA-unwinding enzymes, DDX20 was detectable at the molecular level in mammalian cells with monoclonal antibodies against DDX20 elevated to 103 kDa in size [6]. Subsequent studies revealed that the Cryptobacterium hidradenum gene Mel-46 encoding the DDX20 protein is expressed throughout its development and plays a facilitating role during development [7].…”