{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T13:00:03Z","timestamp":1790686803630,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":65,"publisher":"Wiley","issue":"18","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,12]],"date-time":"2026-05-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1778544000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,12]],"date-time":"2026-05-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1778544000000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/doi.wiley.com\/10.1002\/tdm_license_1.1"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["onlinelibrary.wiley.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Clinical Laboratory Analysis"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,9]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>ABSTRACT<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is partially driven by epithelial\u2013mesenchymal transition (EMT). We identified potential EMT\u2010related biomarkers and targeted drugs for NPC via computational and machine learning approaches.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Based on the NPC patient dataset derived from the public database, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened using the limma package and intersected with the EMT gene set from the database of Epithelial\u2013Mesenchymal Transition\u2010associated genes (dbEMT). Subsequently, GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were performed, and a protein\u2013protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed via the STRING database. Core genes were identified through LASSO regression and SVM\u2010RFE algorithms. Immune cell infiltration was assessed using CIBERSORT; pathway enrichment was analyzed with GSEA software; targeted drugs were predicted via Enrichr; and molecular docking validation was performed using AutoDock. Finally, the selected genes were functionally validated using NPC cell lines.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Among 131 EMT genes, 18 were filtered via PPI. Machine learning algorithms combined with external dataset validation further pinpointed\n                      <jats:italic>MMP1<\/jats:italic>\n                      and\n                      <jats:italic>TGFBR2<\/jats:italic>\n                      as hub genes.\n                      <jats:italic>MMP1<\/jats:italic>\n                      was correlated with M0\/M1 macrophages and activated NK cells, whereas\n                      <jats:italic>TGFBR2<\/jats:italic>\n                      was correlated with resting NK cells and memory B cells. Both genes were linked to EMT, angiogenesis, hypoxia, and MYC targets. Dexamethasone showed strong binding affinity to\n                      <jats:italic>MMP1<\/jats:italic>\n                      (\u22127.72\u2009kcal\/mol) and\n                      <jats:italic>TGFBR2<\/jats:italic>\n                      (\u22127.27\u2009kcal\/mol). Cellular assays revealed upregulated\n                      <jats:italic>MMP1<\/jats:italic>\n                      and downregulated\n                      <jats:italic>TGFBR2<\/jats:italic>\n                      in NPC cells; MMP1 knockdown suppressed NPC malignant phenotypes.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      <jats:italic>MMP1<\/jats:italic>\n                      and\n                      <jats:italic>TGFBR2<\/jats:italic>\n                      were identified as EMT\u2010related biomarkers that mediated immune evasion and metastasis in NPC. Dexamethasone may target these genes, offering a novel therapeutic strategy for NPC.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1002\/jcla.70222","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,12]],"date-time":"2026-05-12T10:19:00Z","timestamp":1778581140000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Molecular Functions and Drug Prediction of\n                    <scp>MMP1<\/scp>\n                    and\n                    <scp>TGFBR2<\/scp>\n                    in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma"],"prefix":"10.1002","volume":"40","author":[{"given":"Feng","family":"Wang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Radiotherapy Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong Tumor Hospital  Nantong 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