Unveiling the Prognostic Potential of SLC2A Gene Family in Glioblastoma Multiforme Using Bioinformatics Approaches

Objective: Glioblastomas (GBMs) are invasive and metastatic cancers with very low overall survival rates. Therefore, it is very important to propose a new biomarker for GBM diagnosis and prognosis. For this purpose, we aimed to investigate the prognostic potential of the SLC2A gene family, which has great importance in cancer, in GBM. Methods: Solute carrier 2A (SLC2A) gene family expression levels, methylation and overall survival rates were analyzed with TCGA, GEPIA and UALCAN databases. Mutations were evaluated with Kaplan-Meier Plot and UCSC Xena database. Protein-protein interactions were analyzed with String database. Results: No statistically significant mutation was detected in the SLC2A gene family. As a result of the analysis, high expression in SLC2A1 and SLC2A5 genes and decrease in SLC2A6 gene expression were found to be statistically significant. Hypermethylation was detected in the promoter regions of SLC2A1, SLC2A2, SLC2A3 and SLC2A5 genes, while hypomethylation was detected in SLC2A4 and SLC2A6 genes. The increase in SLC2A3 gene expression was associated with the overall survival rate of the patients. Conclusion: SLC2A1, SLC2A5 and SLC2A6 gene up-regulation may be a biomarker in the diagnosis of GBM, and SLC2A3 may be a marker in prognosis.