METTL14 and miR-1247 are associated with poor outcomes in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Abstract BackgroundTriple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) doesn’t have targets for therapy, and accounts for 15% of all breast cancers. m6A modification has been reported to play important role in the progression of various cancers. However, the expression and function of the m6A methyltransferase METTL14 in TNBC are unclear. MethodsThe count data of miRNA and mRNA of breast cancer patients with both tumor tissues and matched nomal tissues were downloaded from the TCGA data portal. The expression of METTL14 was determined by immunohistochemistry and western blot. The expression of has-miR-1247 was determined by qRT-PCR.The Cox regression analysis was executed for the expression levels of METTL14 and DEmiRNAs .The Kaplan-Meier survival analysis were performed to establish the correlation between the expression level and survival of BC patients .ResultsWe discovered that METTL14 was significantly downregulated in TNBC tissues, and low expression of METTL14 is correlated with worse differentiation ,higher ki67 proliferation and poorer survival suggesting its potential as an independent prognostic biomarker for TNBC. We also found the positive correlation between the expression levels of METTL14 and has-miR-1247. Moreover, has-miR-1247 was significantly downregulated in TNBC tissues, and lead to poorer survival.ConclusionOur data suggested that METTL14 and miR-1247 could be valuable diagnostic tools, prognostic biomarkers, and therapeutic targets for TNBC.