The chemokine CCL20 can assist AFP in serological diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma
Qingmei Deng,
Xinhui Zhang,
Xiaofeng Wan,
Xin Zheng,
Hongzhi Wang,
Jingyu Zhao,
Hong-Qiang Wang,
Wulin Yang
Affiliations
Qingmei Deng
Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; Medical Pathology Center, Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China
Xinhui Zhang
Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; Medical Pathology Center, Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
Xiaofeng Wan
Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; Medical Pathology Center, Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China
Xin Zheng
State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, 510060, China
Hongzhi Wang
Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; Medical Pathology Center, Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China; Corresponding author. Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, CAS, No. 350, Shushanhu Road, Hefei, 230031, Anhui, China.
Jingyu Zhao
Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; Medical Pathology Center, Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; Institutes of Physical Science and Information Technology, Anhui University, Hefei, 230601, China
Hong-Qiang Wang
Biological Molecular Information System Laboratory, Institute of Intelligent Machines, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China
Wulin Yang
Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; Medical Pathology Center, Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, China; School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China; Corresponding author. Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, CAS, No. 350, Shushanhu Road, Hefei, 230031, Anhui, China.
The chemokine 20 (CCL20) is a member of the CC chemokine family and plays a role in tumor immunity and autoimmune disease. This work investigated the value of CCL20 as a serum diagnostic marker for primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Based on the data of hepatocellular carcinoma patients in the TCGA database, the up-regulated genes encoding secretory proteins were analyzed in each pathological stage, and the candidate marker CCL20 gene was selected. Serum concentrations of CCL20 in patients with primary HCC, benign liver disease, and healthy subjects were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The ROC curve evaluated the efficacy of CCL20 alone or in combination with AFP in the diagnosis of HCC. It was found the expression of CCL20 in HCC patients was significantly higher than that in the benign liver disease group and healthy controls (P < 0.05); The AUC of ROC curve to distinguish HCC patients from healthy controls was 0.859, the sensitivity was 73.42%, and the specificity was 86.84%. After combination with AFP, the AUC increased to 0.968, the sensitivity was 88.16%, and the specificity was 97.37%. Although CCL20 was increased in the serum of patients with benign liver diseases, combined with AFP, the AUC to distinguish HCC patients from non-HCC cohorts (benign liver disease group and healthy control group) was 0.902, with a sensitivity of 91.67% and a specificity of 75.26%. Collectively, serum CCL20 is closely related to the occurrence of HCC, and detection of serum CCL20 can assist AFP in improving the diagnostic sensitivity of HCC.
