NF-κB Pathway Analysis and Biomarker Identification in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a form of head and neck cancer that is endemic in most parts of Asia. Etiological factors for NPC include genetic disposition, consumption of a nitrosamine-rich diet, and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. One of the important EBV oncoproteins responsible for NPC pathogenesis is the Latent Membrane Protein 1 (LMP1). LMP1 interacts with nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) signalling pathway, which regulates genes involved in inflammation, immunity, and cell survival. The dysregulation of NF-kB pathway gives rise to inflammation-related diseases and cancer. Hence, targeting inhibition and activation of NF-kB pathway could be a potential therapeutic strategy against NPC. Results: Using a variety of bioinformatics tools such as eVITTA and Pathview, we analysed the NF-kB signalling pathway using four NPC datasets available on the GEO database. Our analyses showed that the four datasets had a total of 991 differentially expressed genes. Pathway analysis showed the genes in the NF-kB signalling pathway were mostly upregulated and had a positive enrichment score. In addition, proteins from NF-kB family, namely IKBKB, NFKB1, NFKB2, and RELA and EBV proteins such as BSLF1, BZLF1, and BRRF1 could be explored further as biomarkers and drug targets towards developing chemotherapeutics against NPC and other EBV-associated diseases. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, this paper serves as the first NF-kB signalling pathway analysis and potential biomarker identification in NPC. Effective targeted approaches must be developed to address the unique features of the NF-kB signalling pathway for future NPC clinical research.