DDR1 drives cervical cancer progression and immune evasion: a bioinformatics analysis with experimental verification
Cervical cancer remains a major threat to women's health worldwide. Discoidin domain receptor 1 (DDR1) drives immune evasion in a variety of cancers, but its expression pattern, clinical significance, and immunoregulatory mechanisms in cervical cancer have not been clarified. DDR1 expression profiles were resolved based on TCGA and GEPIA2 databases; DDR1-related pathways were enriched by GO/KEGG/GSEA; immunohistochemistry was performed in 40 cases of cervical cancer and 20 cases of normal tissues to assess the association of the DDR1 protein with clinicopathological features and survival prognosis for clinical validation. In addition, the biological role of DDR1 in cervical cancer was detected by Western blot, CCK8 and transwell. DDR1 was significantly overexpressed in cervical cancer and correlated with advanced FIGO stage and poor overall survival; DDR1 can promote the proliferation and migration of cervical cancer cells, and at the same time affect immune escape by reshaping the tumor microenvironment and metabolic reprogramming. DDR1 is able to remodel the immunosuppressive microenvironment. Targeting DDR1 may overcome immune escape and provide a new therapeutic strategy for cervical cancer.