The impact of long non-coding RNA HOTTIP genetic variants on oral cancer progression and clinicopathological characteristics

Oral cancer is the sixth leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Recent studies suggest that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) HOXA transcript at the distal Tip (HOTTIP) may influence oral cancer cell growth and invasion, but comprehensive genetic association studies evaluating the impact of HOTTIP single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on oral cancer susceptibility, and clinicopathological features are lacking. In this study, we investigated the associations between SNPs in the HOTTIP gene and both oral cancer susceptibility and clinicopathological characteristics. A total of 1,192 controls and 1,205 oral cancer patients were genotyped for four HOTTIP SNPs-rs3807598, rs17501292, rs2067087, and rs1859168-using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Our results showed that among oral cancer patients aged 60 years or older, those carrying the HOTTIP rs3807598 "GC+CC" genotype had a significantly reduced risk of developing advanced clinical stage and lymph node metastasis. Additionally, carriers of the rs2067087 "CG+GG" polymorphic variants were associated with a lower risk of developing advanced clinical stages. In conclusion, our findings suggest that the HOTTIP rs3807598 and rs2067087 polymorphisms may serve as pivotal predictor for assessing oral cancer progression.