SEMA6A is a prognostic biomarker in glioblastoma

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one of the most aggressive tumors in the central nervous system. SEMA6A, the first identified class 6 semaphorin, is contributed to regulate vascular development and adult angiogenesis. However, the function of SEMA6A in GBM is still undefined. In the present study, we investigated the expression of SEMA6A protein in 200 GBM tissues using immunohistochemistry (IHC). SEMA6A expression was associated with time to progression (P = 0.001) and mean tumor diameter (P = 0.038). Kaplan–Meier analysis revealed that patients expressing high SEMA6A protein levels had a significantly longer overall survival (OS, P = 0.013) and progression-free survival (PFS, P = 0.005) compared to those with low SEMA6A expression level. Cox multivariate regression analysis confirmed that low SEMA6A expression was an independent unfavorable prognostic factors for PFS (HR, 1.896; 95 % CI, 1.147–2.768; P = 0.009) and OS (HR, 1.712; 95 % CI, 1.011–2.657; P = 0.012). Furthermore, in vitro experiments showed that SEMA6A could inhibit proliferation, migration, and invasion in different glioma cell lines. In conclusion, our findings indicated that SEMA6A may be a potential prognostic biomarker in the treatment of GBM.