The substantial loss of H3K27me3 can stratify risk in grade 2, but not in grade 3 meningioma

Trimethylation of lysine 27 of histone H3 (H3K27me3) has recently emerged as a crucial epigenetic marker in meningioma. The loss of H3K27me3 expression might predict the early recurrence of grade 1 and 2 meningiomas. However, this is controversial in terms of grade 3 meningioma and the effects of H3K27me3 on the overall survival (OS) of patients with low low-grade meningioma have not been studied. Therefore, we immunohistochemically assessed the prognostic implications of H3K27me3 expression in grade 2 and 3 meningiomas. Whole-slide H3K27me3 immunostaining was evaluated for strict quality control and to confirm a significant correlation (P < .0001) with tissue microarray results. The effects of tissue age on H3K27me3 immunostaining were also evaluated, to select an appropriate cohort for survival analysis. Log-rank tests of 115 grade 2 meningiomas and 26 grade 3 meningiomas showed that the loss of H3K27me3 expression was a prognostic factor for early recurrence (P < .0001) and death (P = .00012) in grade 2, but not in grade 3 meningioma. Multivariate analysis revealed that age, recurrent tumor, and loss of H3K27me3 expression (hazard ratio, 1.264 -7.510; P = .0133) were significant for recurrentrecurrence-free survival (RFS), and that recurrent tumor and loss of H3K27me3 expression (hazard ratio, 1.717-120.621; P Z .0140) were significant for OS. We concluded that H3K27me3 expression is a significant prognostic factor for the RFS and OS of patients with grade 2 meningioma; it should be considered as an ancillary test for risk stratification of this meningioma.(C) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The trimethylation of lysine 27 of histone H3 (H3K27me3) is a crucial epigenetic marker in meningioma, especially predicting early recurrence and death for grade 2 patients. However, its significance in grade 3 meningioma is controversial. H3K27me3 could be considered as an ancillary test for risk stratification of grade 2 meningioma patients.