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September 5, 2025Open Access

Fatty acid-binding proteins as potential biomarkers for human cancer prognosis

YGYuting GuanQiqihar University JTJiaxin TanGuangxi University ZXZhihua XuQinghai University

Key Points

FABP family gene expression varies widely, impacting cancer prognosis and treatment outcomes.
Survival analysis using the Kaplan-Meier method reveals the prognostic potential of FABP family genes in hepatocellular carcinoma.
The correlation between FABP gene expression and sensitivity to anticancer drugs may enhance treatment strategies for various cancers.
Genetic variation patterns of FABP are linked to the tumor microenvironment and immune subtypes, providing insights for precision medicine.

Abstract

Fatty acid-binding proteins (FABPs) play a pivotal role in the malignant progression of numerous human cancers. However, the precise functions of FABP family genes in different cancer types remain incompletely elucidated. The data used in this study were acquired from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). These data were employed to analyze the expression levels of FABP family genes across different cancer types and their association with sensitivity to anticancer drugs. Survival analysis of FABP family genes was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method. In addition, we investigated the correlation of immune subtypes, tumor microenvironment, and stemness score with pan-cancer. We further explored the role of FABP family genes in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), copy number variation patterns, and clinical prognostic value. Finally, we evaluated the expression of FABP family genes in human HCC samples using real-time quantitative PCR. The results showed different degrees of genetic heterogeneity among FABP family members. The expression of FABP varies widely in most cancers and paracancerous tissues, especially BRCA and HCC. The expression of the FABP family is positively correlated with the sensitivity of most anticancer drugs. We discovered the predictive prognostic value of FABP family genes through survival analyses. In pan-cancer, there was a significant variation in the expression of the FABP family across six distinct immunotypes. These genes were strongly associated with immune subtypes, stemness scores, and tumor microenvironment. The pattern of genetic variation of the FABP family in HCC was mainly amplification and deletion, with FABP4, FABP5, FABP9, and FABP12 having significantly higher frequencies of amplified genes than the other members. Our findings provide new guidance for the precision diagnosis and treatment of FABPs in pan-cancer. FABP3 and FABP5 may be potential prognostic factors for HCC, but further research is needed to confirm.

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