Original contributionThe expression of a tumor suppressor gene JDP2 and its prognostic value in hepatocellular carcinoma patients

- This study is the first clinical connection between JDP2 and HCC.
- High JDP2 expression was significantly correlated with early stage HCC.
- JDP2 expression was negatively correlated with tumor size.
- High JDP2 expression was significantly associated with better overall survival of HCC patients.
- JDP2 can serve as an independent prognostic marker for HCC patients.

SummaryThe c-Jun dimerization protein 2 (JDP2) belongs to the activator protein-1 (AP-1) family and functions as a repressor of the AP-1 complex by dimerizing with other c-Jun proteins. Thus, JDP2 plays an important role in the repression of AP-1-driven biological processes, such as differentiation and proliferation. Recent studies have suggested that JDP2 may function as a tumor suppressor through its suppressive action against the AP-1 complex, which is known to drive oncogenic signals in several human malignancies. In this study, we used immunohistochemistry to examine the JDP2 expression in 211 cases of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and analyzed the potential link of JDP2 expression to the clinicopathological features of HCC patients. Clinical parameter analysis showed that high expression of JDP2 was significantly correlated with smaller tumor size (P = .002) and early stage HCC (P = .039). Moreover, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that high expression of JDP2 was significantly associated with better survival in HCC patients (P = .006). Taken together, our results showed that JDP2 may serve as a tumor suppressor in HCC and could therefore serve as a good prognostic marker for patients with HCC.