Fig. 2: MLPH levels were positively correlated with PDAC tumorigenesis and metastasis.

A–C MLPH was upregulated in -QQ PANC-1 cells. A Differentially expressed genes in parental (Prt) or -QQ PANC-1 cells were identified by the Bulk RNA sequence analysis shown in the Volcano Plot. Red dots represent genes with significant differences, and blue dots represent genes without significant differences. B MLPH mRNA levels increased in -QQ cells. Quantitative results of relative mRNA levels of MLPH in Prt or -QQ PANC-1 cells. C MLPH protein levels increased in -QQ cells. Extracts of Prt and -QQ PANC-1 cells were analyzed by western blot assay with antibodies against MLPH and Ku70 (loading control). D MLPH was upregulated in metastatic PDAC tissues compared to benign pancreas tissue in PDAC patients. The mRNA gene expression of MLPH in normal (N), primary tumor (Pri.), and metastatic tumor (Meta.) were obtained from the GEO database: GEO71729. E PDAC patients with higher MLPH expression showed poorer prognosis. Data analyzed from NCKUH cohort. F High MLPH expression positively correlated with poor disease-free survival. Disease-free survival was analyzed using the Kaplan–Meier method. Data were analyzed from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. P values were determined using the log-rank test. Data are represented as the mean ± SD of three independent experiments. n.s. no significance, *P < 0.05, ***P < 0.001.