Exploring a potential link between protein kinase C zeta and gut microbiota in cervical cancer: a hypothesis-generating study

Cervical cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related death. Integrating TCGA/GTEx and GWAS, we identified PRKCZ as a risk factor (OR = 1.26, p = 0.008). PRKCZ was upregulated in tumors, and its knockdown inhibited SiHa and HeLa proliferation. Using gutMGene, we identified Escherichia coli as a microbe computationally predicted to be associated with PRKCZ based on literature-curated data. Public 16S rRNA data (45 patients vs. 30 controls) showed reduced gut microbial diversity and higher abundance of the genus Escherichia-Shigella (which includes Escherichia coli ) in patients. Parallel trends of higher Escherichia-Shigella abundance and PRKCZ expression were observed in separate cohorts. Importantly, because the microbiome and transcriptomic data derive from independent, non‑paired cohorts, no direct microbiota–gene association was measured, and no causal or mechanistic relationship can be inferred. These hypothesis-generating observations suggest a hypothetical association among gut Escherichia coli , PRKCZ, and isoquercetin, warranting direct validation in paired multi‑omics cohorts and functional studies.