近年来，肿瘤免疫治疗成为了广泛的研究热点，IKZF家族基因在肿瘤微环境中的价值也越来越受到认可。然而，直到现在，在人类头颈鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）的主要亚组中，IKAROS家族锌指3（IKZF3）基因的表达和其预后价值并未被报道。在本研究中，我们分析了IKZF3基因表达与HNSCC患者生存率之间的关系。为了全面评估IKZF3作为HNSCC预后生物标志物的潜力，我们利用了多个在线分析工具，包括UALCAN、cBioPortal、GEPIA、WebGestalt、String、Genomic Data Commons和TIMER数据库。我们观察到，在IKZF3表达较高的HNSCC患者中，总体生存率 tend to longer。单变量和多变量Cox回归分析表明，年龄和分级是HNSCC的独立预后指标。此外，基因本体论和KEGG功能富集分析显示，HNSCC中的几个途径可能是IKZF3调控的重要途径，这表明IKZF3可能参与了HNSCC的发生和发展。此外，IKZF3基因的低甲基化与HNSCC中观察到的突变基因密切相关。IKZF3与几种免疫细胞在HNSCC中显著相关（例如，CD8+ T细胞、CD4+细胞和树突状细胞）。我们探讨了IKZF3在HNSCC中的潜在预后价值和作用，揭示了IKZF3可能成为HNSCC患者的新型可靠预后生物标志物。版权所有 ©2023作者。 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. 发表。

In the past few years, immunotherapy of tumors has become an extensive research hotspot, and the value of IKZF family genes in the tumor microenvironment has also been increasingly recognized. However, the expression of the IKAROS family zinc finger 3 (IKZF3) gene in human head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and its prognostic value were not reported for the main subset until now. In the present study, we analyzed the relationship between IKZF3 gene expression and the survival of HNSCC patients. To evaluate the potential of IKZF3 as a prognostic biomarker for HNSCC comprehensively, multiple online analysis tools, including UALCAN, cBioPortal, GEPIA, WebGestalt, String, Genomic Data Commons, and TIMER databases were utilized in our study. We observed that the HNSCC patients with higher IKZF3 expression tended to exhibit longer overall survival. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses indicated that age and grade were independent prognostic indicators in HNSCC. Moreover, Gene Ontology and KEGG function enrichment analyses showed that several pathways in HNSCC might be pivotal pathways regulated by IKZF3, which revealed that IKZF3 was probably participating in the occurrence and development of HNSCC. Furthermore, the hypomethylation of the IKZF3 gene was closely associated with genes that observed mutation in HNSCC. IKZF3 was significantly correlated with several immune cells in HNSCC (e.g., CD8+ T cell, CD4+ cell, and dendritic cell). We explored the potential prognostic values and roles of the IKZF3 in HNSCC, revealing that IKZF3 was probably a novel and reliable prognostic biomarker for patients with HNSCC.Copyright © 2023 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.