Table 4.
Potential detective markers of HCC
| HCC molecules | Function or significance | Related pathway | Changes during HCC | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Methyltransferase‐like 3 (METTL3) | A major RNA N6‐adenosine methyltransferase (m6A), an inhibitor of cytokine signaling 2 (SOCS2) expression | m6A‐YTHDF2 (reader protein)‐dependent pathway | Upregulation | [ 70 , 147 ] |
| Nuclear receptor coactivator 5 (NCOA5) | Positively regulating ERɑ‐mediated transcription | EMT process | Downregulation | [ 70 , 148 ] |
| High mobility group A2 (HMGA2) | Negatively regulating Ras‐dependent activation | MAPK‐RAS pathway | Downregulation | [ 149 ] |
| Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTORC2) | Promoting fatty acid and lipid synthesis then steatosis and tumor development | mTOR pathway | Upregulation | [ 150 ] |
| Src homolog and collagen homolog 3 (Shc3) | Inducing epithelial‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) and proliferation as well as metastasis of HCC | MVP/MEK/ERK | Upregulation | [ 151 ] |
| Na+/Ca2+ exchanger 1 (NCX1) | Regulating the effect of TGFβ on tumor migration, invasion, and metastasis via interacting with canonical transient receptor potential channel 6 (TRPC6) | TGFβ pathway | Upregulation | [ 152 ] |
| Phospholysine inorganic pyrophosphate phosphatase (LHPP) | A protein histidine phosphatase as TSG | mTOR pathway | Downregulation | [ 153 ] |
| Long intergenic non‐coding RNA located on 1q21.2 sequence (LINC01138) | Physically interacting with insulin‐like growth factor‐2 mRNA‐binding proteins 1/3 (IGF2BP1/IGF2BP3) and arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) | Downstream PRMT5 ubiquitination and degradation | Upregulation | [ 154 ] |
| Src homology region 2 (SH2) domain‐containing phosphatase 1 (SHP‐1 or PTPN6) | Inhibiting proliferation, migration, invasion, and tumorigenicity of HCC | STAT3, NF‐κB, and AKT pathway | Downregulation | [ 155 ] |
| Sterol O‐acyltransferase 1 (SOAT1) | Promoting distribution of cellular cholesterol, proliferation, and migration of HCC | TGFβ pathway | Upregulation | [ 156 ] |
| Hepatic leukemia factor (HLF) | An oncofetal protein reactivated in HCC by SOX2 and OCT4 | HLF/c‐Jun axis | Upregulation | [ 157 ] |
| Wingless‐type MMTV integration site family member 3a (Wnt3a) | A key component of the mesoderm gene in embryonic development | Wnt/β‐catenin pathway | Upregulation | [ 158 ] |
| Taurine upregulated gene 1 (TUG1) | Positive correlated to AFP mRNA levels in non‐hepatitis B/non‐hepatitis C HCC (NBNC‐HCC) | Undiscussed | Upregulation | [ 71 ] |