Downregulation of TMTC4 expression is associated with improved prognosis in osteosarcoma

PurposeOsteosarcoma is the most common primary tumor of bone tissue. To date, the expression of transmembrane and tetratricopeptide repeat containing 4 (TMTC4) in osteosarcoma has not been reported. This study aimed to investigate the significance of TMTC4 in the prognosis of osteosarcoma.MethodsWe screened the expression of downstream genes after interleukin 11 receptor subunit alpha knockout in osteosarcoma using the Gene Expression Omnibus database. Data from The Cancer Genome Atlas database and a cloud-based platform were used to further analyze the expression levels and functional impact of TMTC4 in osteosarcoma, along with subgroup analysis. Polymerase chain reaction was used to detect TMTC4 expression in osteoblast and osteosarcoma cells, and a cell counting kit-8 assay was employed to assess cell proliferation.ResultsEleven downregulated genes, including <i>TMTC4</i>, were identified using the GSE191215 database. Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed that osteosarcoma cells with low TMTC4 expression were associated with a higher survival rate. Enrichment analysis suggested that low TMTC4 expression might be related to immunoregulatory pathways. Methylation analysis revealed that TMTC4 methylation was significantly increased in osteosarcoma cells. In addition, TMTC4 expression was significantly higher in osteosarcoma cells than in osteoblast cells, and inhibition of TMTC4 expression hindered osteosarcoma cell proliferation.ConclusionTMTC4 is an important biomarker in patients with osteosarcoma, and its low expression is associated with improved prognosis.