Abstract
BACKGROUND: The nuclear pore complex (NPC) is the main mediator of nuclear and cytoplasmic communication, and delaying or blocking nuclear RNA export and protein shuttling can inhibit cell proliferation and induce apoptosis. Although NPC is a research hotspot in structural biology, relevant studies in hepatocellular carcinoma are scarce, especially in terms of translation into clinical practice. METHODS: This study used a bioinformatics approach combining validation experiments to investigate the biological mechanisms that may be related with NPC. A series of experiments performed to explore the function of the Targeting protein for Xenopus kinesin-like protein 2 (TPX2) in HCC. RESULTS: Patients with HCC can be divided into two NPC clusters. Patients with high NPC levels (C1) had a shorter survival time than those with low NPC levels (C2) and are characterised by high levels of proliferative signals. We demonstrated that TPX2 regulates HCC growth and inhibits apoptosis in an NPC-dependent manner and contributes to the maintenance of HCC stemness. We developed the NPCScore to predict the prognosis and degree of differentiation in HCC patients. CONCLUSION: NPC plays an important role in the malignant proliferation of HCC. Assessing NPC expression patterns could help enhance our understanding of tumor cell proliferation and could guide more effective chemotherapeutic strategies.