Background: Karyopherin alpha 2 (KPNA2) is a nuclear import factor that plays a crucial role in nucleocytoplasmic transport, as well as cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in several cancers. However, the roles of KPNA2 in breast cancer as well as the underlying molecular mechanisms have not been elucidated.
Materials and Methods: To evaluate gene expression alterations during breast carcinogenesis, KPNA2 expression was analyzed using the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis and Oncomine analyses. The correlation between methylation and expression was analyzed using the MEXPRESS tool, UALCAN cancer database, and cBioPortal browser. Then, the expression and prognostic value of KPNA2 were investigated by our own breast cancer samples using RT-PCR. KPNA2 methylation level was detected by methylation-specific PCR.
Results: We obtained the following important results. (1) KPNA2 expression was significantly higher in breast cancer than normal samples and regulated by aberrant DNA hypomethylation of promoter region. (2) Among patients with breast cancer, those with higher KPNA2 expression had a lower survival rate. (3) The major mutation type of KPNA2 in breast cancer samples was missense mutation. (4) Homer1 was able to promote breast cancer progression may be through upregulating TPX2 expression.
Conclusion: Our findings suggest that aberrant DNA hypomethylation of promoter regions contributes to the aberrant expression of KPNA2 in breast cancer, which might be a potential indicator of poor prognosis.
Keywords: KPNA2, breast cancer, prognosis, methylation, TPX2