Heliyon (Aug 2024)
Deciphering the predictive value of senescence-related signature in lung adenocarcinoma: Implications for antitumor immunity and immunotherapy efficacy
Abstract
Objective: The senescence process is pivotal in both the onset and advancement of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), influencing cell growth, immune evasion, the potential for metastasis, and resistance to treatments. Senescent cells' dual nature, both harmful and advantageous, adds complexity to understanding their expression patterns and clinical relevance in LUAD. In this study, we sought to evaluate the predictive value of the senescence-related signature in survival outcomes and immunotherapy efficacy in patients with LUAD. Materials and methods: We integrated data from 1449 LUAD cases sourced from different publicly accessible datasets and a clinical cohort of Chinese LUAD patients. The Cox regression analysis employing the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) was performed on 156 senescence-associated genes to develop the senescence-related signature. Kaplan-Meier analysis and time-dependent receiver operating characteristic curves were utilizaed to assess the prognostic significance of the senescence-related signature. Functional annotation, immune infiltration analysis, and gene set variation analysis were applied to investigate the association of the senescence-related signature with anti-tumor immunity in LUAD. Immunotherapy cohorts of non-small cell lung cancer, urothelial carcinoma, skin cutaneous melanoma, and glioblastoma patients were included to assess the senescence-related signature in predicting immunotherapy efficacy. Results: The senescence-related signature, which encompasses seven senescence-related genes, namely, FOXM1, VDAC1, PPP3CA, MAPK13, PIK3CD, RRAS, and CCND3, was identified to have predictive significance across multiple LUAD cohorts and demonstrated a negative association with antitumor immunity and tumor-infiltrating neutrophils. Patients exhibiting low expression levels of the senescence-related signature responded more favorably to immune checkpoint inhibitors in various solid tumors, including LUAD. Inhibiting FOXM1 pharmacologically with thiostrepton produced tumor-suppressive effects and improved immunotherapy responses in a Lewis lung carcinoma mouse model. Conclusions: The senescence-related signature demonstrates potential in predicting patient prognosis and immunotherapy efficacy in LUAD.
