We next performed Kaplan-Meier analysis and found that HCC patients with high expression of NEDD8, NAE1, UBE2M, or RBX1 displayed a lower overall survival rate than those with low expression of the corresponding protein (Log-rank test: NEDD8, P=0.017; NAE1, P=0.017; UBA3, P=0.002; UBE2M, P=0.003; and RBX1, P=0.008) (Figure 1C). This evidence concerns the gene UBA3 and hepatocellular carcinoma.