Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signature

Abstract Cervix cancer is a major health concern globally, being the fourth most prevalent type of cancer among females across the globe. Despite existing preventive measures like cytology and HPV testing, more precise diagnostic and treatment strategies are needed. This study leverages single-cell...

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Main Authors: Beilei Zhang, Zhanghang Li, Zhaojie Yang, Yidan Yin, Mingke Duan, Lei Wang, Qirui Zhan, Fu Wang, Ruifang An
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-08-01
Series:BMC Cancer
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-025-14637-4
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author Beilei Zhang
Zhanghang Li
Zhaojie Yang
Yidan Yin
Mingke Duan
Lei Wang
Qirui Zhan
Fu Wang
Ruifang An
author_facet Beilei Zhang
Zhanghang Li
Zhaojie Yang
Yidan Yin
Mingke Duan
Lei Wang
Qirui Zhan
Fu Wang
Ruifang An
author_sort Beilei Zhang
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Cervix cancer is a major health concern globally, being the fourth most prevalent type of cancer among females across the globe. Despite existing preventive measures like cytology and HPV testing, more precise diagnostic and treatment strategies are needed. This study leverages single-cell sequencing and transcriptome analysis to identify LLPS-linked therapeutic targets in cervical cancer. Utilizing data from the GEO database, we characterized six main cell types in cervical cancer and calculated LLPS scores for each. Analysis of LLPS-related genes revealed seven prognostic genes, and we constructed a predictive model demonstrating promising stability and accuracy. Furthermore, high-risk patients exhibited higher LLPS scores and lower survival probabilities, which may be influenced by differences in the tumor immune microenvironment, particularly involving immune cell types such as CD8+ T cells, M0 macrophages and regulatory T cells. Exploring the expression patterns of model genes, we found PDIA6, PGK1, ASPH, and FNDC3B to be involved in immune infiltration during tumorigenesis. Finally, the signature genes that related to immune microenvironment was confirmed by immunohistochemistry staining. PGK1 was found to be most closely associated with the prognosis of cervical cancer. The correlation analysis of PGK1 with pathways in cervical cancer revealed that the expression level of PGK1 is associated with lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, our analysis using immunofluorescence and flow cytometry showed that lipid peroxidation increased after PGK1 knockdown. We further employed the proliferation experiment and cell-derived xenograft (CDX) mouse model to verify that downregulating PGK1 suppresses proliferation of cervical cancer in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, our study provides comprehensive insights into cervical cancer prognosis, identifying PGK1 as a potential therapeutic target among LLPS-related genes.
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issn 1471-2407
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publisher BMC
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series BMC Cancer
spelling doaj-art-861c6785eccf40ebb6bdfd70abbda9202025-08-20T03:05:09ZengBMCBMC Cancer1471-24072025-08-0125112110.1186/s12885-025-14637-4Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signatureBeilei Zhang0Zhanghang Li1Zhaojie Yang2Yidan Yin3Mingke Duan4Lei Wang5Qirui Zhan6Fu Wang7Ruifang An8Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityInstitute of Medical Engineering, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityInstitute of Medical Engineering, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityInstitute of Medical Engineering, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityInstitute of Medical Engineering, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityInstitute of Medical Engineering, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityInstitute of Medical Engineering, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityInstitute of Medical Engineering, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong UniversityAbstract Cervix cancer is a major health concern globally, being the fourth most prevalent type of cancer among females across the globe. Despite existing preventive measures like cytology and HPV testing, more precise diagnostic and treatment strategies are needed. This study leverages single-cell sequencing and transcriptome analysis to identify LLPS-linked therapeutic targets in cervical cancer. Utilizing data from the GEO database, we characterized six main cell types in cervical cancer and calculated LLPS scores for each. Analysis of LLPS-related genes revealed seven prognostic genes, and we constructed a predictive model demonstrating promising stability and accuracy. Furthermore, high-risk patients exhibited higher LLPS scores and lower survival probabilities, which may be influenced by differences in the tumor immune microenvironment, particularly involving immune cell types such as CD8+ T cells, M0 macrophages and regulatory T cells. Exploring the expression patterns of model genes, we found PDIA6, PGK1, ASPH, and FNDC3B to be involved in immune infiltration during tumorigenesis. Finally, the signature genes that related to immune microenvironment was confirmed by immunohistochemistry staining. PGK1 was found to be most closely associated with the prognosis of cervical cancer. The correlation analysis of PGK1 with pathways in cervical cancer revealed that the expression level of PGK1 is associated with lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, our analysis using immunofluorescence and flow cytometry showed that lipid peroxidation increased after PGK1 knockdown. We further employed the proliferation experiment and cell-derived xenograft (CDX) mouse model to verify that downregulating PGK1 suppresses proliferation of cervical cancer in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, our study provides comprehensive insights into cervical cancer prognosis, identifying PGK1 as a potential therapeutic target among LLPS-related genes.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-025-14637-4Liquid-liquid phase separationTranscriptome analysisSingle-cell sequencingPGK1Cervical cancer
spellingShingle Beilei Zhang
Zhanghang Li
Zhaojie Yang
Yidan Yin
Mingke Duan
Lei Wang
Qirui Zhan
Fu Wang
Ruifang An
Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signature
BMC Cancer
Liquid-liquid phase separation
Transcriptome analysis
Single-cell sequencing
PGK1
Cervical cancer
title Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signature
title_full Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signature
title_fullStr Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signature
title_full_unstemmed Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signature
title_short Downregulation of PGK1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid-liquid phase separation-related gene signature
title_sort downregulation of pgk1 promotes lipid peroxidation and suppresses proliferation in cervical cancer revealed by liquid liquid phase separation related gene signature
topic Liquid-liquid phase separation
Transcriptome analysis
Single-cell sequencing
PGK1
Cervical cancer
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-025-14637-4
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