Comprehensive analysis of the functions and prognostic significance of RNA-binding proteins in bladder urothelial carcinoma

Alterations in RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) are reported in various cancer types; however, the role of RBPs in bladder urothelial cancer (BLCA) remains unknown. This study aimed to systematically examine the function and prognostic significance of RBPs in bladder cancer using bioinformatics analyses. RNA sequencing and clinical data for BLCA were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, and differentially expressed RBPs (DERBPs) between normal and cancer tissues were identified. A total of 388 DERBPs were identified, including 219 upregulated and 169 downregulated RBPs. All RBPs were screened for the prognostic model establishment and 9 RBPs (TRIM71, YTHDC1, DARS2, XPOT, ZNF106, FTO, IPO7, EFTUD2, and CTU1) were regarded as prognosis-related hub RBPs in BLCA. Further analysis revealed worse overall survival (OS) in the high-risk cohort compared to the model-based low-risk cohort. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.752 in the training group and 0.701 in the testing group, which supports the strength of its predictive ability. A nomogram was established according to nine prognosis-related RBPs, which showed strong predictive ability for BLCA. The C-indices of the nomogram were 0.7033 in the training group, and 0.6295 in the testing group. The prognosis-related hub RBPs may be involved in oncogenesis, development, and metastasis of BLCA. Our results will be of great significance in revealing the pathogenesis of BLCA, and developing new therapeutic targets and prognostic molecular markers for BLCA.