Reduced levels of actin gamma 1 predict poor prognosis in ovarian cancer patients

Aim: To investigate the expression and function of actin gamma 1 (ACTG1) in ovarian cancer.

Methods: We performed immunohistochemical staining of 176 ovarian cancer tissue samples in a human tissue microarray to detect expression of ACTG1. Staining intensity was examined in relation to clinicopathological parameters. To investigate the prognostic value of ACTG1, ACTG1 mRNA data from 300 ovarian cancer patients in The Cancer Genome Atlas database were examined.

Results: The immunohistochemical results demonstrated that levels of ACTG1 were reduced in the samples of human ovarian cancer tissue that were examined, and the levels negatively correlated with various clinicopathological parameters. Levels of ACTG1 mRNA also negatively correlated with clinical stage. In Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, higher levels of ACTG1 mRNA were associated with improved overall survival. In multivariate analysis by Cox regression, ACTG1 expression was identified as an independent prognostic marker of favorable overall survival.

Conclusion: ACTG1 may represent a valuable marker for the prognosis of ovarian cancer, and further studies of ACTG1 are warranted.