Expression and prognostic value of PIM-1 kinase in gliomas.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the correlation of PIM-1 with the clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients.

Methods: The MTERF3 mRNA and protein expression levels in tissues were detected by western blot and immunohistochemistry. The expression and survival of PIM-1 in patients with glioma were analysed using the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis database, the Gene Expression Database of Normal and Tumor Tissues 2, and the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas database. The relationship between PIM-1 expression and immune cells and chemokines was analysed using the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource Version 2.0 tool and the Tumor and Immune System Interactions Database. A Kaplan-Meier plot was used to estimate the correlation between PIM-1 expression and the survival of patients with glioma.

Results: The expression of PIM-1 was upregulated in glioma and was positively correlated with tumour grade. The expression of PIM-1 was significantly inhibited on the second day after transfection (<0.05), and the inhibition was most obvious on the sixth day (<0.01). The results of the co-expression pattern of PIM-1 showed that the expression of 5,012 genes was positively correlated with PIM-1, while the expression of 3,651 genes was negatively correlated with PIM-1. Macrophages (<0.001), myeloid dendritic cells (<0.001), NK cells (<0.001), CD4 T cells (<0.001), cancer-associated fibroblasts (<0.001), and neutrophils (<0.001) were positively correlated with the expression of PIM-1 in low-grade glioma.

Conclusion: PIM-1 is overexpressed in glioma and is related to the prognosis of glioblastoma multiforme, and PIM-1 may be a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for glioma.