Abstract:  Objective To investigate the expression of netrin-G1 (NTNG1) in serum samples and tissues of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients and its clinical significance. Methods A total of 63 cases of HCC tissue samples confirmed by pathology in Guangxi Medical University Cancer Hospital were collected. The expression of NTNG1 protein was detected by Western blot, and the relationship between the expression level and clinicopathological features as well as prognosis was analyzed. The peripheral serum samples of 90 patients with HCC, hepatitis, healthy subjects, and other tumor patients admitted to the hospital during the same period were collected, and the serum NTNG1 levels was detected by ELISA. Results NTNG1 was highly expressed in HCC tissues (P=0.001), which was an independent risk factor affecting the overall survival of HCC patients. The serum level of NTNG1 in HCC group was significantly higher than that in other control groups (all P<0.001). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed that the sensitivity and specificity of HCC were 84.62% and 76.56%, respectively, and the area under the ROC curve was 0.8251. Conclusions NTNG1 is highly expressed in HCC tissues and associated with poor prognosis of HCC patients, which may be a potential prognostic evaluation marker for HCC patients．

Key words: Hepatocellular carcinoma, NTNG1, Tissues, Prognosis, Serum