Type-1 Na+/H+ exchanger is a prognostic factor and associate with immune infiltration in liver hepatocellular carcinoma

Aims SLC9A1 plays an important role in the growth, differentiation and glycolysis of tumor cells. The present study aimed to elucidate the correlation between SLC9A1 and tumor immune infiltration. Main methods Expression level of SLC9A1 gene in tumors was identified in GEPIA. The correlation between SLC9A1 and survival in various types of cancers was analyzed by the PrognoScan. SLC9A1 immune infiltration levels and clinical correlation analysis was generated via TIMER and TIMER2.0. KEGG enrichment analysis of SLC9A1 expression was evaluated via STRING. Key findings We found that, in cancers such as liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC), the expression of SLC9A1 was significantly higher in tumor tissues compared with normal tissues, and was significantly associated with poor prognosis. Further analysis showed that SLC9A1 expression in LIHC was significantly positively correlated with immune cell infiltration, and the correlation was the highest for LIHC among 40 cancers. The expression of SLC9A1 is significantly correlated with the immune marker set of most immune cells in LIHC. Furthermore, we found that the expression level of TGF-β (TGFB1) in Tregs showed the highest correlation with the expression of SLC9A1 in LIHC. Significance The increased expression of SLC9A1 is positively correlated with the prognosis of cancer and the level of immune infiltration. Therefore, SLC9A1 is an important prognostic factor for immunotherapy against hepatocellular carcinoma.