The PLOD family: Novel biomarkers and potential therapy targets for personalized treatment in Soft Tissue Sarcoma

The Procollagen-Lysine, 2-Oxoglutarate 5-Dioxygenase (PLOD) family contains three members: PLOD1, PLOD2 and PLOD3. The PLOD family catalyze the lysyl hydroxylase (LH) which plays a crucial role in the synthesis of collagen. As one of the most important components in ECM, collagen plays a crucial role in normal tissues. Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are malignant tumors with more than 100 subtypes which origin from mesenchymal tissue. Although the STS is a rare malignancy accounting for less than 1% of all adult tumors, it has been reported to be responsible for 20% of all cancer-related deaths in childhood and adolescence. In this study, the relation between PLOD family and STS was analyzed. The overexpression of PLOD family is associated with poor prognosis and the PLOD family seems to be a regulator in TME. The PLOD family could serve as strong novel biomarkers and may be used as a therapy target for personalized treatment in STS