Pan-cancer analysis reveals the associations between MMP13 high expression and carcinogenesis and its value as a serum diagnostic marker

Sep 24, 2026

Pan-cancer analysis evaluates matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP13) as a co-carcinogenic signature and diagnostic candidate across cancers. Integrated bioinformatics links MMP13 expression with prognosis, immune infiltration, tumor mutational burden and microsatellite instability, and cancer-related signaling. Experimental validation uses western blotting to confirm MMP13 and EMT-associated factors, and ELISA to quantify serum MMP13 for diagnostic performance. Results show frequent upregulation, adverse prognosis, EMT pathway activation, and measurable diagnostic AUC values across multiple tumor types.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

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Pages21

Reading Time53 min

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ABSTRACT

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

INTRODUCTION

[www.aging-us.com](www.aging-us.com) AGING 2023, Vol. 15, No. 6 Research Paper Pan-cancer analysis reveals the associations between MMP13 high expression and carcinogenesis and its value as a serum diagnostic marker Xinhui Zhang1,2,3, Qingmei Deng2,3,&, Xiaofeng Wan2,3, Jingyu Zhao2,3,4, Xin Zheng5, Hongzhi Wang2,3, Hong-Qiang Wang6, Wulin Yang1,2,3 1School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China 2Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China 3 Medical Pathology Center, Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China 4 Institutes of Physical Science and Information Technology, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, China 5State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou 510060, China 6 Biological Molecular Information System Laboratory, Institute of Intelligent Machines, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China Correspondence to: Wulin Yang, Qingmei Deng, Hongzhi Wang; [email:](email: yangw@cmpt.ac.cn)[ ](email: yangw@cmpt.ac.cn)[yangw@cmpt.ac.cn](email: yangw@cmpt.ac.cn); [okybf@126.com](okybf@126.com), [https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5665-296X](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5665-296X); [wanghz@hfcas.ac.cn](wanghz@hfcas.ac.cn) [Keywords:](Keywords: MMP13)[ MMP13](Keywords: MMP13), pan-cancer, prognosis, diagnosis, biomarker Received: October 29, 2022 Accepted: March 8, 2023 Published: March 22, 2023 Copyright: © 2023 Zhang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. ABSTRACT Background: Matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP13) is a member of the endopeptidase matrix metalloproteinase family, which is involved in many normal physiological processes and even tumorigenesis. However, its co-carcinogenic signature in different cancers is not fully understood. Methods: In this study, we first analyzed the expression of MMP13 in pan-cancer and its association with prognosis, immune infiltration, and cancer-related signaling pathways through integrated bioinformatics. Furthermore, western blotting (WB) was used to verify the expression of MMP13 and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) factors in cancer tissues. Finally, the value of MMP13 as a serum diagnostic marker was analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: MMP13 expression is frequently upregulated in multiple cancers that always indicate an adverse prognosis. MMP13 undergoes comprehensive genetic alterations and promoter methylation reduction in various tumors. Additionally, immune correlation analysis showed that MMP13 expression was significantly associated with TMB, MSI, and tumor immune infiltration. Pathway enrichment analysis showed that MMP13 upregulation was correlated with activation of the EMT signaling pathway, which was verified by WB in lung adenocarcinoma tissues. Most importantly, ELISA results showed that serum MMP13 levels could be used for the diagnosis of multiple tumors, including BRCA, HNSC, LUAD, and LUSC, with the area under the curve (AUC) values of 0.8494, 0.9259, 0.7144, and 0.8575, respectively. Conclusions: MMP13 is often overexpressed across cancers and predicts poor prognosis, with the potential as a therapeutic target. Furthermore, the up-regulation of its expression can be effectively reflected in the serum protein level, thus serving as a valuable diagnostic marker. INTRODUCTION Cancer is ranked as a leading cause of death and an important barrier to increasing life expectancy in every country in the world [1] . Despite continued improvements in

FAQs

What is the main focus of this study on MMP13 in cancer?

The study analyzes how high MMP13 expression associates with carcinogenesis across cancers, its prognostic relevance, and whether serum MMP13 can serve as a diagnostic marker.

How were MMP13-related relationships evaluated?

Integrated bioinformatics assessed MMP13 expression links to prognosis, immune infiltration, and signaling pathways, followed by western blotting to verify MMP13 and EMT factors.

How was the diagnostic value of MMP13 tested?

Serum diagnostic performance was evaluated using ELISA, measuring MMP13 levels and reporting AUC values for multiple tumor types, including BRCA, HNSC, LUAD, and LUSC.

Sep 24, 2026

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