Table 4. Functional roles of 20 core genes with degree ≥20.
These biological functions are closely related to the prostate cancer. A total of 20 core genes were screened with degree ≥20. The full name and the function of the 20 core genes were listed.
| No. | Gene symbol | Full name | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CKS2 | Cyclin kinase subunit 2 | Overexpressed CKS2 promotes cell growth and protects cell from apoptosis |
| 2 | TK1 | Thymidine kinase 1 | TK1 is related to DNA precursor synthesis, acts as a proliferating biomarker of prostate and breast cancer |
| 3 | MKI67 | Marker of proliferation Ki-67 | KI-67 is a marker of tumor cell proliferation and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition |
| 4 | TOP2A | Topoisomerase IIα | TOP2A controls the topology structure of DNA and cell cycle progression |
| 5 | CCNB1 | Cyclin B1 | A high cyclin B1 level contributes to the development of polyploidy and was a prognosis biomarker of prostate cancer for chemotherapy |
| 6 | RRM2 | Ribonucleotide-reductase regulatory subunit M2 | RRM2 limits the rate of DNA synthesis and repair. It was considered to be a biomarker to predict recurrence in PCa patients with low-risk |
| 7 | EZH2 | Enhancer of Zeste homolog 2 | Drug targeting therapy EZH2 may be a new therapeutic strategy for advanced PCa and docetaxel-resistant PCa patients |
| 8 | AURKA | Aurora kinase A | AURKA was considered to be a potential prognostic biomarker for the progression of high-risk small-cell prostate cancer |
| 9 | BIRC5 | Baculoviral IAP Repeat containing 5 | BIRC5 may prevent apoptotic cell death, by survivin, a protein that inhibits apoptosis |
| 10 | CCNB2 | Cyclin B2 | CDC2 specifically binds to Cyclin B2 to increase cell migration which is related to the development of CRPC |
| 11 | CDCA8 | Cell division cycle associated 8 | Overexpressed CDCA8 is related to mitosis and cell growth and acts as a prognosis biomarker of breast cancer |
| 12 | TPX2 | Targeting protein for Xenopus kinesin-like protein 2 | TPX2 is a microtubule-associated protein linked to mitosis and spindle assembly and targeting TPX2 is a strategy of PCa |
| 13 | CENPF | Centromere protein F | CENPF acts in the centromere-kinetochore complex and chromosomal segregation, it is related to aggressive prostate cancer |
| 14 | NVAPG | Non-SMC condensin I complex subunit G | NCAPG acts as a target of miR-99a-3p in PCa cells, overexpression of NCAPG is related to CRPC |
| 15 | NUSAP1 | Nucleolar and spindle-associated protein 1 | NUSAP1 is a prognosis biomarker in the early stage of PCa patients |
| 16 | ANLN | Anillin actin binding protein | ANLN was found to be related to cell cycle and growth of PCa cells |
| 17 | CDCA5 | Cell division cycle associated 5 | Knockdown CDCA5 may cause cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase |
| 18 | ECT2 | Epithelial cell transforming sequence 2 | ECT2 is a guanine nucleotide exchange factor that is related to the progression of tumors |
| 19 | HMMR | Hyaluronan-mediated motility receptor | Hyaluronan-mediated motility receptor (HMMR) binds native and fragmented HA, promotes HA uptake |
| 20 | CENPU | Centromere protein U | CENPU upregulation can increase the invasiveness of prostate cancer |