The EGFR Polymorphism Increased the Risk of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Through the miR-3196-Dependent Approach in Chinese Han Population

Background: Previous studies have shown that epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) promotes cell proliferation through the PI3K-Akt-mTOR signaling pathway and participates in the occurrence and development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Here, we focused on the functional polymorphism of EGFR in the 3'-untranslated region (UTR), aiming to reveal the potential mechanisms by which functional polymorphism is associated with the risk and development of HCC in the Han Chinese population.

Methods: This study was a hospital-based case-control study. A total of 600 patients were enrolled, and another 600 healthy volunteers served as controls. The miR-associated SNPs in EGFR were screened, and genotyping was performed by TaqMan allele differential analysis. In this study, genotyping, real-time PCR, cell transfection and double luciferase reporter gene were used for subsequent analysis.

Results: HBV/HCV infection instead of alcohol exposure, smoking exposure, hypertension or diabetes mellitus was associated with an increased risk of HCC. Compared with TT genotypes, TG and GG genotypes of EGFR rs884225 were significantly associated with reduced HCC risk. The stratified analysis of association between rs884225 and HCC subgroup feature reveal a highly correlation with tumor size. Furthermore, qRT-PCR confirmed that EGFR rs884225, TG and GG genotypes were more likely to bind to miR-3196 and down-regulate EGFR level in cells, thereby inhibiting cell proliferation.

Conclusion: This study suggested that EGFR rs884225 is associated with a reduced risk of liver cancer and may be a developing biomarker.