Construction of Interferon-Gamma-Related Gene Signature to Characterize the Immune-Inflamed Phenotype of Glioblastoma and Predict Prognosis, Efficacy of Immunotherapy and Radiotherapy

• Main Authors: Hang Ji, Yixu Ba, Shuai Ma, Kuiyuan Hou, Shan Mi, Xin Gao, Jiaqi Jin, Qin Gong, Ting Liu, Fang Wang, Zhihui Liu, Shupeng Li, Jianyang Du, Shaoshan Hu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2021-09-01
• Series: Frontiers in Immunology
• Subjects: glioblastoma; interferon-gamma; tumor immune microenvironment; IFNG-related gene signature; anti-tumor immune response; immune checkpoint blockade therapy
• Online Access: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2021.729359/full

Interferon-gamma (IFNG) has profound impacts on tumor-immune interaction and is of great clinical significance for multiple cancers. Exploring the role of IFNG in glioblastoma (GBM) may optimize the current treatment paradigm of this disease. Here, multi-dimensional data of 429 GBM samples were collected. Various bioinformatics algorithms were employed to establish a gene signature that characterizes immunological features, genomic alterations, and clinical characteristics associated with the IFNG response. In this way, a novel IFNG-related gene signature (IFNGrGS, including TGFBI, IL4I1, ACP5, and LUM) has been constructed and validated. Samples with increased IFNGrGS scores were characterized by increased neutrophil and macrophage infiltration and exuberant innate immune responses, while the activated adaptive immune response may be frustrated by multiple immunosuppressive mechanisms. Notably, the IFNG pathway as well as its antagonistic pathways including IL4, IL10, TGF-beta, and VEGF converged on the expression of immune checkpoints. Besides, gene mutations involved in the microenvironment were associated with the IFNGrGS-based stratification, where the heterogeneous prognostic significance of EGFR mutation may be related to the different degrees of IFNG response. Moreover, the IFNGrGS score had solid prognostic value and the potential to screen ICB and radiotherapy sensitive populations. Collectively, our study provided insights into the role of IFNG on the GBM immune microenvironment and offered feasible information for optimizing the treatment of GBM.