Identification of Key Biomarkers and Immune Infiltration in Sporadic Vestibular Schwannoma Basing Transcriptome-Wide Profiling

Vestibular schwannoma is a common intracranial tumor, with 95% of the cases being sporadic vestibular schwannoma (SVS). The purpose of this study was identifying genes responsible for inflammation in SVS and clarifying its underlying immune mechanisms. Transcriptional sequencing datasets (GSE141801 and GSE108237) from the Gene Expression Omnibus database were used in this study. The candidate modules closely related to SVS and hub genes were screened out by weighted gene coexpression network analysis. Τhe sensitivity and specificity of the hub genes for SVS prediction were evaluated by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. The CIBERSORT algorithm was subsequently applied to analyze the immune infiltration between SVS and controls. Finally, biological signaling pathways involved in the hub genes were identified via gene set enrichment analysis. A total of 39 significantly enriched in myelination and collagen-containing extracellular matrix DEGs were identified at the screening step. Three hub genes (MAPK8IP1, SLC36A2, and OR2AT4) were identified, which mainly enriched in pathways of melanogenesis, GnRH, and calcium signaling pathways. Compared with normal nerves, SVS tissue contained a higher proportion of T cells, monocytes, and activated dendritic cells, whereas proportions of M2 macrophages were lower. The integrated analysis revealed the pattern of immune cell infiltration in SVS and provided a crucial molecular foundation to enhance understanding of SVS. Hub genes MAPK8IP1, SLC36A2, and OR2AT4 are potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets to facilitate the accurate diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy of SVS.