Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals specific expression and cell cycle-independent characteristics of SLC6A6 in epithelial ovarian cancer cells
PAN Jie
ZHAO Xiaojuan
YAN Bo
LI Jia
YANG Hong
Abstract：Objective To analyze the expression characteristics and biological functions of solute carrier family 6 member 6(SLC6A6)in the tumor microenvironment of epithelial ovarian cancer(EOC)based on single-cell RNA sequencing data.Methods Utilizing a single-cell dataset of EOC(GSE222556)from the GEO database,epithelial cells(tumor cells)were extracted and annotated.These cells were further divided into functional subgroups,including proliferative,non-proliferative,and IFN-responsive subtypes,to analyze the expression patterns of SLC6A6 across these subgroups.Based on SLC6A6 expression levels,epithelial cells were categorized into high-and low-expression groups for differential gene expression analysis.GO enrichment analysis,cell cycle assessment,and clinical correlation analysis were subsequently performed.Results SLC6A6 was highly expressed in tumor epithelial cells of EOC.Within tumor cells,the expression patterns of SLC6A6 were similar among the proliferative,non-proliferative,and IFN-responsive subgroups.GO enrichment analysis revealed that genes associated with high SLC6A6 expression were primarily enriched in biological processes such as epithelial cell proliferation and positive regulation,intercellular communication and microenvironment remodeling,and angiogenesis.Cell cycle analysis indicated no direct correlation between SLC6A6 expression levels and cell cycle distribution.Clinical correlation analysis demonstrated that high SLC6A6 expression was significantly associated with advanced FIGO stage and BRCA wild-type status,and its expression was higher in primary lesions compared to metastatic lesions(P<0.01).Conclusion SLC6A6 is expressed across various cell types within the EOC tumor microenvironment.Its high expression is involved in multiple biological processes related to tumor progression,suggesting that it may be a molecule with potential research value in EOC.
Keywords：solute carrier family 6 member 6single-cell analysisovarian neoplasmsepithelial cellstumor microenvironmentcell cyclebioinformaticsgene expression regulation
Publication Date：2026-04-30
Online Publishing Date：2026-08-26(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：7( 594-600 )