Identifying the prognosis implication, immunotherapy response prediction value, and potential targeted compound inhibitors of integrin subunit α3 (ITGA3) in human cancers

Sep 21, 2026

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The integrin subunit α3 (ITGA3) is an integrin family member that can drive cancer progression, metastasis, and invasion, yet its roles in the tumor microenvironment, prognosis, and immunotherapy remain insufficiently defined. A multifaceted pan-cancer analysis using multiple databases and web tools shows ITGA3 is aberrantly expressed and frequently upregulated, linked to genomic alterations and methylation. ITGA3 correlates with patient outcomes, immune hallmarks, immune infiltration, and checkpoints, and can predict immunotherapy response. Candidate targeted inhibitors were screened with CMap and CellMiner, followed by molecular docking.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages20

Reading Time50 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Cancer prognosis and tumor microenvironment

Integrins as therapeutic targets

Evidence linking ITGA3 to multiple cancers

Heliyon 10 (2024) e24236 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Heliyon journal [homepage:](homepage: www.cell.com/heliyon)[ www.cell.com/heliyon](homepage: www.cell.com/heliyon) | Research article
Identifying the prognosis implication, immunotherapy response prediction value, and potential targeted compound inhibitors of integrin subunit α3 (ITGA3) in human cancers
Jiawei Gui a, e, 1, Lufei Yang a, b, c, d, 1, Junzhe Liu a, b, c, d, 1, Yishuang Li f, Mi Zou g, Chengpeng Sun e, Le Huang e, Xingen Zhua, b, c, d, Kai Huang a, b, c, d, *
a Department of Neurosurgery, The 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Jiangxi Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330006, PR China b Institute of Neuroscience, Jiangxi Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330006, PR China
c Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Neurological Tumors and Cerebrovascular Diseases, Nanchang, PR China d JXHC Key Laboratory of Neurological Medicine, Jiangxi, 330006, Nanchang, PR China e HuanKui Academy, Jiangxi Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330031, PR China f Queen Mary School, Jiangxi Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang, PR China
g The Second Clinical Medical College, Jiangxi Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330031, PR China | | | | --- | --- | --- | | A R T I C L E I N F O | | A B S T R A C T | | Keywords:
Integrin subunit α3 (ITGA3) Pan-cancer
Biomarker
Tumor microenvironment Immunotherapy Molecular docking | | The integrin subunit α3 (ITGA3) is a member of the integrin alpha chain protein family, which could promote progression, metastasis, and invasion in some cancers. Still, its function in the tumor microenvironment (TME), cancer prognosis, and immunotherapy remains unclear. A multifaceted analysis of ITGA3 in pan-cancer utilizing various databases and online web tools revealed ITGA3 was aberrantly expressed in tumor tissues and upregulated in most cancers, which may be related to ITGA3 genomic alterations and methylation modification. In addition, ITGA3 was significantly correlated with the poor or better prognosis of cancer patients, immunerelated pathways in hallmark, immune infiltration, and immune checkpoints, revealing a biological function of ITGA3 in the tumor progression, tumor microenvironment, and tumor immunity. We also found that ITGA3 could predict the response to tumor immunotherapy based on cytokine-treated samples and immunotherapy cohorts. ITGA3 may participate in shaping and regulating the tumor microenvironment to affect the tumor immune response, which was a promising immunotherapy response predictive biomarker and potential therapeutic target to work synergistically with cancer immunotherapy to boost the response and efficacy. Finally, potential targeted compound inhibitors and sensitive drugs were screened using databases ConnectivityMap (CMap) and CellMiner, and AutoDock Tools was used for molecular docking. | 1. Introduction Despite the great advances in cancer treatment over the past decades, especially immunotherapy, which has tremendously * Corresponding author. Department of Neurosurgery, The 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Jiangxi Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330006, PR China. E-mail address: [kaihuang@ncu.edu.cn](kaihuang@ncu.edu.cn) (K. Huang). 1 These authors contributed equally to this work. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24236](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24236) Received 29 May 2023; Received in revised form 30 November 2023; Accepted 4 January 2024 Available online 6 January 2024 2405-8440/© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ([http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)). revolutionized cancer treatment, patients with advanced malignant tumors still suffer from unsatisfactory prognoses [1]. Therefore, exploring new prognostic biomarkers and therap

FAQs

What is the central purpose of the study regarding ITGA3 in cancers?

To determine how ITGA3 relates to cancer prognosis, tumor microenvironment biology, and the ability to predict immunotherapy response, and to identify potential targeted inhibitors.

How was ITGA3 characterized across cancers?

The study used a multifaceted pan-cancer analysis with various databases and online web tools to evaluate expression, genomic/methylation associations, and clinical correlations.

How did the researchers assess immunotherapy response prediction?

They analyzed ITGA3 using cytokine-treated samples and immunotherapy cohorts to test its predictive value for immunotherapy response.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Logic