Study on the Difference of Gene Expression between Central and Peripheral Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma Based on TCGA Database

Background and objective Lung cancer is a malignant tumor disease with high morbidity and high mortality. The non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most common type, among them, lung squamous cell carcinoma own special pathological type and specific treatment, is a subtype of non-small cell lung cancer and can be divided into peripheral type and central type according to clinical phenotype. This study explores the differences in gene levels and their potential values based on clinical differences between central and peripheral in lung squamous cell carcinoma. Methods The lung squamous cell carcinoma dataset was collected from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, clinical information and the corresponding gene expression profiles were downloaded. Then we further sort and analyze all these data. Results In clinical characteristics analysis, result showed that central lung squamous cell carcinoma was more likely to metastasis with lymph node than peripheral lung squamous cell carcinoma (46.2%, 67/145 vs 28.9%, 26/90; P=0.019), while there were no significant differences in gender, age, tumor size, distant metastasis, tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage, and EGFR mutation. Gene expression analysis showed 1,031 differentially expressed genes between central and peripheral lung squamous cell carcinoma, of which 629 genes were up-regulated and 402 genes were down-regulated (peripheral vs central). Further enrichment analysis showed differentially expressed genes were mainly riched in 6 signaling pathways. Among them, the neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction pathway was the main enrichment pathway of differentially expressed genes, and other differential expressed genes were mainly involved in lipid metabolism and glucose metabolism. The analysis of interaction network showed that hepatocyte nuclear factor 1 homeobox A (HNF1A) and cytochrome p450 family, Cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) own widely effect in up-regulated genes, while ALB and APOA1 at the key positions of the network in down-regulated genes were Conclusion Central and peripheral lung squamous cell carcinoma showed clinical phenotype difference not only reflected in the incidence of lymph node metastasis, but also in gene expression profiles. Among them, HNF1A, CYP3A4, ALB, APOA1 at the key position of the differential gene interaction network and maybe as regulatory factors in the phenotypic difference.