Clinical Significance of Integrin Subunit Beta 4 in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Abstract

Background: The expression level and clinical significance of integrin subunit beta 4 ( ITGB4 ) in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) remain unclear. Materials and Methods: Expression of ITGB4 in HNSCC tissues was evaluated by calculating standard mean differences (SMDs) based on gene chips, RNA-seq, and immunohistochemistry data ( n = 2330) from multiple sources. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to detect the ability of ITGB4 to distinguish HNSCC from non-HNSCC samples. The relationship between the expression level of ITGB4 and clinical parameters was evaluated by calculating SMDs. Results: Identical results of mRNA and protein levels indicated remarkable up-expression of ITGB4 in HNSCC tissues. Further ROC curves showed that ITGB4 could distinguish HNSCC from non-HNSCC samples. Genetic alteration analysis of ITGB4 in HNSCC indicated that overexpression of ITGB4 in HNSCC was likely not owing to genetic alteration of ITGB4 . Moreover, ITGB4 overexpression level may be correlated with clinical T stage. Conclusion: ITGB4 likely plays an essential role in HNSCC occurrence based on our study and its potential diagnostic value is worthy of further exploration in the future.