Researchers Explore the Role of NCAPG in the Growth and Metastasis of NSCLC

By: Vanessa A. Carter, BS
Posted: Tuesday, January 21, 2025

According to Limin Chen, PhD, of Fujian Medical University Union Hospital, Fuzhou, China, and colleagues, the mechanism behind the non-SMC condensing I complex subunit G (NCAPG) gene and its prognostic significance in non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is currently unknown. Using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases, these investigators found that NCAPG is upregulated in this specific cancer. Their results, which may influence future treatment decisions, were published in the American Journal of Cancer Research.

“Overall, our results reveal the key role of NCAPG in NSCLC and highlight the regulatory function of the NCAPG/CDK1/ERK axis in regulating the progression of NSCLC,” the researchers concluded. “In addition, the high expression of NCAPG is associated with the poor prognosis of NSCLC patients and may be a potential target for the treatment of NSCLC patients.”

Microarray data sets and RNA sequences from patients with NSCLC were obtained from the GEO and TCGA databases. A total of three GEO data sets and 894 patients from the TCGA data set were included in the study. Mice were transfected with A549 and H1299 lung cancer cells and were sacrificed after 3 to 4 weeks to collect and analyze their tumors.

The NCAPG gene significantly correlated with the survival of patients with NSCLC. Cancer and adjacent-tissue analysis revealed that NCAPG expression was significantly increased in NSCLC, with multivariate Cox regression analysis confirming NCAPG as an independent prognostic factor in these individuals. Of note, high NCAPG expression was significantly associated with lymphatic metastasis, and it promoted the growth and metastasis of NSCLC both in vitro and in vivo. It was discovered that NCAPG-mediated phosphorylation of ERK may be a potential mechanism for NCAPG to promote NSCLC, as demonstrated by its interaction with cyclin-dependent kinase 1.

Disclosure: The study authors reported no conflicts of interest.

American Journal of Cancer Research