A novel m7G methylation-related miRNA signature for overall survival prediction in thyroid cancer

Abstract Background Thyroid cancer (THCA) is an extremely heterogeneous malignancy with different prognoses.A variety of miRNAs affect the process of tumor through different mechanisms.However, the m7G methylation-related miRNA expression in THCA and their associations with prognostic results remain elusive. Methods Based on the miRNA expression data from TCGA, differentially expressed miRNAs were screened out.Then, a 7-miRNA prognostic signature was established through LASSO Cox regression.Eventually, our team performed functional enrichment and immune activity analysis. Results A total of 47 differently expressed miRNAs were screened out, 7 of which exhibited a significant correlation with overall survival (OS) (P < 0.05).A 7-miRNA signature was developed, exhibiting an excellent forecast power. Patients were classfied into high- and low-risk groups on the basis of the mid-value of the risk score regarding our signature.The cases in High risk patients displayed a remarkably higher mortality than low risk patients (P < 0.001). The risk scoring was an independent prediction factor for OS based on multivariable Cox regressive analyses (P < 0.05). The receiver operating characteristic(ROC) analyses validated the prediction ability of the signature.Immune activity analyses revealed that the immune status of the two risk groups was different.The differentially expressed genes in the risk score and immune score showed a strong association with immune cells and immune pathways. Conclusion A novel miRNA prediction model was established for THCA and these miRNAs could be potential therapeutic targets.