Integrative Analysis of Minichromosome Maintenance Proteins and Their Prognostic Significance in Melanoma

Background Minichromosome maintenance (MCM) is known for participating in cell cycle progression, as well as DNA replication. While the diverse expression patterns and prognostic values ofMCMs in melanoma still remained unclear. Methods In the present study, the transcriptional and clinical profiles ofMCMs were explored in patients with melanoma from multiple databases, including GEO, TCGA, ONCOMINE, GEPIA, UALCAN, cBioPortal, and TIMER databases. Results We found that the elevated expressions ofMCM2–6andMCM10were significantly expressed in melanoma compared to normal skin. High mRNA levels ofMCM4,MCM5, andMCM10were closely related to worse prognosis in patients with melanoma. GSEA showed hallmark pathways were most involved in mTORC1 signaling, G2M checkpoint, E2F targets, and mitotic spindle. Furthermore, we found potential correlations between theMCMexpression and the immune cell infiltration, including B cells, CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, neutrophils, macrophages, and dendritic cells. Conclusion UpregulatedMCMgene expression in melanoma probably played a crucial part in the development and progression of melanoma. The upregulatedMCM4/5/10expressions could be used as potential prognostic markers to improve the poor outcome and prognostic accuracy in patients with melanoma. Our study might shed light on the selection of prognostic biomarkers as well as the underlying molecular pathogenesis of melanoma.