Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41997046›Full record

ArticleTranslational oncology2026

Transcriptomic and single-cell analyses reveal the prognostic value of ETV4 and its role in shaping the immune landscape of colorectal cancer.

Ruipeng Meng, Shilong Wang, Zhanfei She, Huaiming Wang, Bo Wu, Yu Qiao, Pengyuan Chen, Nargerel, Xiaofeng Yang, Liang Wang

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Article in Translational oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Ruipeng MengDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Shilong WangDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Zhanfei SheDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Huaiming WangDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Bo WuDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Yu QiaoDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Pengyuan ChenDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
NargerelDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Xiaofeng YangDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China.
Liang WangDepartment of General Surgery, Ordos Central Hospital Affiliated to Inner Mongolia Medical University, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, 017010, China. Electronic address: 120803737@qq.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundColorectal cancer (CRC) remains a major health threat with poor prognosis in advanced stages. The transcription factor ETV4 (ETS translocation variant 4) has been implicated in various cancers, but its specific role, prognostic value, and mechanisms in CRC, particularly concerning the tumor immune microenvironment, are not fully understood.

methodsWe performed a comprehensive analysis using transcriptomic data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and single-cell RNA sequencing data from the GEO database (GSE231559). Bioinformatic approaches included survival analysis, immune cell infiltration estimation via CIBERSORT, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), gene set variation analysis (GSVA), and single-cell clustering. Experimental validation was conducted on clinical CRC tissue samples and HCT-116 cells, employing flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, quantitative real-time PCR (Q-PCR), and Western blot.

resultsIn the TCGA cohort, ETV4 was significantly upregulated in 650 CRC tissues vs 51 adjacent normal tissues, with high expression linked to poorer overall survival in CRC patients.Immune infiltration analysis revealed correlations between ETV4 expression and specific immune cell subsets, notably macrophages. Flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry confirmed that high ETV4 expression was linked to increased polarization of immunosuppressive M2-type macrophages in the tumor microenvironment. Furthermore, bioinformatic GSVA and subsequent wet-lab experiments demonstrated that ETV4 is a downstream target gene of the WNT/β-catenin signaling pathway. Activation of this pathway upregulated ETV4 expression, while inhibition downregulated it, establishing a functional link.

conclusionThis integrative study reveals that ETV4 is a prognostic biomarker in CRC. It promotes tumor progression by reshaping the immunosuppressive microenvironment, particularly through inducing M2 macrophage polarization, and is regulated by the oncogenic WNT/β-catenin pathway. These findings suggest that ETV4 is expected to become a potential diagnostic biomarker and candidate therapeutic target for colorectal cancer, providing a novel direction for subsequent research on the diagnosis and treatment of CRC.

Indexed as

Colorectal CancerETV4M2 MacrophageWNT/β-catenin signaling

Identifiers

PMID41997046
PMCPMC13101611

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.