The
tyrosine 3-monooxygenase/
tryptophan 5-monooxygenase activation
proteins (14-3-3) participate in the
tumorigenesis and progression of numerous malignances, but their precise prognostic values in
breast cancer (BrCa) remain unknown. Here, we investigated the expression profiles and prognostic roles of 14-3-3
isoforms by employing multiple online databases. The transcriptional levels of most 14-3-3
isoforms in BrCa tissues were significantly higher than those in normal tissues. High
mRNA expression of 14-3-3 beta/sigma/theta/zeta was significantly associated with poor overall survival (OS) in BrCa patients, while high
mRNA expression of 14-3-3 epsilon was notably related to favorable OS. High
mRNA expression of 14-3-3 beta/gamma/sigma/theta/zeta was significantly associated with poor relapse-free survival (RFS) in BrCa patients. A high mutation rate of 14-3-3 was determined to be associated with poor clinical outcomes. In addition, 14-3-3 expression was correlated with the infiltration of specific immune cells types. Analysis of the breast-specific
protein-
protein interaction (PPI) network suggested that
14-3-3 proteins were involved in several potential oncogenic mechanisms in BrCa. Finally, we performed experimentally validated their oncogenic roles in BrCa. Overall, our findings systematically elucidate the expression and distinct prognostic value of 14-3-3
isoforms in BrCa, which may provide potential therapeutic targets and prognostic
biomarkers for BrCa.