Research Article 2026-04-23 under-review v1

Integration of bulk and single-cell RNA-seq data identifies a cellular senescence-related prognostic signature in liver hepatocellular carcinoma

R
Rentong Liu The 967th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army
B
Bing Li The 967th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army
Y
Yiqian Luo The 967th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army
X
Xiuwei Yan Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, Hangzhou Medical College
Y
Yuanyuan Wang The 967th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army
S
Song Jiang The 967th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army
C
Chengjie Gan The 967th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army
Y
Yiwei Cheng The 967th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army

Abstract

Liver Hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) is a highly heterogeneous malignancy with poor prognosis, underscoring the urgent need for reliable biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Cellular senescence plays a dual role in tumor progression, yet the landscape of cellular senescence-related genes (CSRGs) in LIHC remains incompletely characterized. In this study, we curated 167 CSRGs from the Gene Ontology database and performed integrative analysis using transcriptomic data from The Cancer Genome Atlas and International Cancer Genome Consortium cohorts, combined with single-cell RNA-sequencing data from the Tumor Immune Single-Cell Hub database. Fifteen prognostic CSRGs were identified and used to stratify LIHC patients into two distinct molecular subtypes with divergent clinical outcomes. Cluster 2 exhibited an immune-excluded phenotype characterized by high immune infiltration but impaired effector function, correlating with poor prognosis, whereas Cluster 1 represented an immune-desert phenotype. A CSRGs-based risk score was constructed and validated as an independent prognostic factor across cohorts. Single-cell analysis identified EEF1E1 as a key CSRG specifically enriched in malignant hepatocytes, with high EEF1E1 expression correlating with advanced clinicopathological features and immune cell infiltration. Functional experiments demonstrated that EEF1E1 knockdown significantly suppressed LIHC cell migration and invasion. Collectively, this study provides a comprehensive characterization of CSRGs in LIHC and establishes a robust prognostic signature with potential clinical utility, identifying EEF1E1 as a functionally relevant oncogenic driver and a promising therapeutic target in LIHC.

Citation Information

@article{rentongliu2026,
  title={Integration of bulk and single-cell RNA-seq data identifies a cellular senescence-related prognostic signature in liver hepatocellular carcinoma},
  author={Rentong Liu and Bing Li and Yiqian Luo and Xiuwei Yan and Yuanyuan Wang and Song Jiang and Chengjie Gan and Yiwei Cheng},
  journal={Discover Oncology},
  year={2026},
  doi={https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9198475/v1}
}
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