Identification of a Novel Chemokine-related Long Non-coding RNA Risk Model Via Comprehensive Prognostic and Immune Analyses in Pancreatic Cancer.

[OBJECTIVES] The prognosis and 5-year survival rate of pancreatic cancer (PC) remain poor. Accumulating evidence suggests that chemokines and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play crucial roles in PC progression. This study further explored the potential involvement of chemokine-related lncRNAs in PC.

[METHODS] Using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, we identified chemokine-related lncRNAs associated with PC prognosis and established a risk prediction model. Patients were then divided into high-risk and low-risk groups. Through comprehensive analyses of clinicopathological features, the immune microenvironment, tumor mutation burden, and drug sensitivity, we assessed differences in prognosis and response to immunotherapy between the two groups. Additionally, the function of a selected lncRNA was validated through in vitro experiments.

[RESULTS] We included six chemokine-related lncRNAs (AC025162.2, SOCS2-AS1, AC025181.2, LINC00909, AC004825.2, and AC068620.2) to construct a PC risk prediction model. The results showed that patients in the high-risk group had a significantly shorter overall survival than those in the low-risk group, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 3.08 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.94 - 4.90; P <0.001). Differences in clinicopathological characteristics and responses to immune treatment were also observed between the two groups. Furthermore, in vitro functional experiments confirmed the inhibitory effect of SOCS2-AS1 on the proliferation and metastasis of PC cells.

[CONCLUSIONS] The chemokine-related lncRNAs risk model established in this study exhibits significant prognostic value in PC and may provide new insights for future therapeutic strategies.