Pan-cancer multi-omics profiling of MS4A2 unveils its functional landscape in lung adenocarcinoma

Abstract

Background: The membrane-spanning 4-domains subfamily A member 2 (MS4A2), a mast cell-specific IgE receptor component, exhibits paradoxical roles in cancer progression. While pan-cancer analyses suggest its context-dependent duality, its prognostic hierarchy across survival metrics-overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), progression-free interval (PFI), and disease-free interval (DFI)-remains uncharacterized in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD).

Materials and methods: We integrated bulk RNA-seq (TCGA/GTEx, 33 cancers) and single-cell transcriptomics (NSCLC cohorts) to map MS4A2's expression dynamics. Prognostic impacts were quantified through Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier modeling for all four survival endpoints (OS/DSS/PFI/DFI), complemented by immune infiltration and methylation-epigenetic correlation analyses. Drug sensitivity associations were evaluated using GDSC pharmacogenomics.

Results: Pan-cancer stratification revealed LUAD-specific prognostic dominance of MS4A2, with elevated expression reducing mortality risk (OS HR = 0.58, DSS HR = 0.61; all p<0.05) and prolonging disease control (PFI HR = 0.59, DFI HR = 0.59; all p<0.05). Single-cell mapping localized MS4A2 to tumor-associated mast cells, where its bidirectional chemokine regulation-suppressing lymphoid homing (CCL19/CCL21) while amplifying myeloid recruitment (CCL20/CXCL8)-orchestrated leukocyte transendothelial migration. Clinically, MS4A2 exhibited female-biased expression (p<0.01) and stage-dependent attenuation (p<0.01), correlating with enhanced sensitivity to 5-fluorouracil and axitinib (p<0.05) in high-expressing tumors despite their immune-evasive traits.

Conclusion: By converging multi-omics evidence across four prognostic axes (OS/DSS/PFI/DFI), we redefine MS4A2 as a mast cell-driven gatekeeper of LUAD progression. Its dual chemokine polarization establishes an immunosuppressive niche paradoxically susceptible to cytotoxic agents, proposing a precision stratification framework: MS4A2 high tumors for 5-FU/axitinib regimens combined with immunotherapies to counterbalance microenvironmental resistance. This quad-metric prognostic model advances LUAD management by linking mast cell biology to clinically actionable survival endpoints.

Keywords: MS4A2; lung adenocarcinoma; mast cell; pan-cancer; tumor microenvironment.