We were surprised to discover that all the differentially expressed RBP genes were mutated in CRC samples, and the mutation frequency of 11 RBP genes (PRKDC, RBMS3, SRRM2, HELZ2, MSI2, AFF3, DZIP1, TNRC6A, SND1, QKI, ESRP1) was more than 5% (Additional file 4). Here, ESRP1 is linked to colorectal carcinoma.