A New RBPs-Related Signature Predicts the Prognosis of Colon Adenocarcinoma Patients

The dysregulation of RNA binding proteins (RBPs) is closely related to tumorigenesis and development. However, the role of RBPs in Colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) is still poorly understood. We downloaded COAD's RNASeq data from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, screened the differently expressed RBPs in normal tissues and tumor, and constructed a protein interaction network. COAD patients were randomly divided into a training set (N = 315) and a testing set (N = 132). In the training set, univariate Cox analysis identified 12 RBPs significantly related to the prognosis of COAD. By multivariate COX analysis, we constructed a prognostic model composed of five RBPs (CELF4, LRRFIP2, NOP14, PPARGC1A, ZNF385A) based on the lowest Akaike information criterion. Each COAD patient was scored according to the model formula. Further analysis showed that compared with the low-risk group, the overall survival rate (OS) of patients in the high-risk group was significantly lower. The area under the curve of the time-dependent receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.722 in the training group and 0.738 in the test group, which confirmed a good prediction feature. In addition, a nomogram was constructed based on clinicopathological characteristics and risk scores. C-index and calibration curve proved the accuracy in predicting the 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates of COAD patients. In short, we constructed a superior prognostic and diagnostic signature composed of five RBPs, which indicates new possibilities for individualized treatment of COAD patients.