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Updated: May 17, 2026

The Use of Reverse Phase Protein Arrays (RPPA) to Explore Protein Expression Variation within Individual Renal Cell Cancers
Published on: January 22, 2013
Computational multi-omics modelling identifies TOP2A as a central prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in
Shahid Ullah Khan1, Abdul Jamil Khan2, Faheem Ahmed Khan3
1Department of Biomedical Sciences, Dubai Medical College for Girls, Dubai Medical University, Dubai, 19099, United Arab Emirates; Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal and Agricultural Sciences, Universitas Diponegoro., Jl. Prof. Jacub Rais, Tembalang, Semarang, Central Java, 50275, Indonesia.
Abstract:
This study systematically investigates the clinicopathological and molecular significance and tumorigenic functions of TOP2A in the kidney cancer subtypes KIRC, KIRP, and KICH through integrative bioinformatics analyses utilizing TCGA and a suite of different databases, including cBioPortal, UALCAN, GEPIA, TIMER, KM Plotter, TISIDB, OncoDB, ENCORI, MEXPRESS, String, GeneMANIA, and the Human Protein Atlas etc. TOP2A expression was found to be significantly upregulated across a range of clinical contexts, including pathological stage, histological subtype, tumor grade, and lymph node involvement. Aggressive tumor characteristics and poor patient outcomes were consistently linked to elevated TOP2A levels. Frequent changes at the TOP2A locus were found by genomic profiling, primarily in the form of gene amplifications and mutations. Correlation analysis corroborated TOP2A involvement in abnormal cell cycle regulation by showing a strong positive association between TOP2A and CDK family members. TOP2A expression is strongly correlated to various immune cell types and immunomodulatory variables, according to additional investigation of immune infiltration, suggesting a potential role in forming the tumor immune microenvironment. Furthermore, pathway enrichment analysis revealed that TOP2A expression levels influence the activation or suppression of multiple cancer-related signaling pathways. Higher TOP2A expression is associated with enhanced sensitivity to certain anticancer treatments, according to drug sensitivity analysis based on GDSC data and Pearson correlation. Furthermore, the notion that TOP2A plays a key role in oncogenic networks was supported by protein-protein interaction network analysis. Overall, these findings imply that TOP2A may be a possible therapeutic target in KIRC, KIRP, and KICH as well as a helpful predictive biomarker.
Insights
Topoisomerase II alpha (TOP2A) is upregulated in kidney cancers (KIRC, KIRP, KICH), correlating with aggressive disease and poor outcomes. TOP2A may serve as a predictive biomarker and therapeutic target.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Bioinformatics
- Genetics
Background:
- Kidney cancer comprises several subtypes with distinct clinical behaviors.
- Understanding the molecular drivers of kidney cancer progression is crucial for developing targeted therapies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the clinicopathological, molecular, and functional roles of TOP2A in kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC), kidney renal papillary cell carcinoma (KIRP), and kidney chromophobe (KICH).
- To evaluate TOP2A as a potential biomarker and therapeutic target in these kidney cancer subtypes.
Main Methods:
- Integrative bioinformatics analyses using TCGA data and multiple public databases (cBioPortal, UALCAN, GEPIA, TIMER, KM Plotter, etc.).
- Analysis included gene expression, genomic alterations, correlation with clinical parameters, cell cycle association, immune infiltration, pathway enrichment, drug sensitivity, and protein-protein interactions.
Main Results:
- TOP2A expression is significantly upregulated across KIRC, KIRP, and KICH, correlating with advanced pathological stage, higher tumor grade, and lymph node involvement.
- Elevated TOP2A levels are associated with aggressive tumor characteristics, poor patient outcomes, and frequent genomic alterations (amplifications, mutations).
- TOP2A correlates with cell cycle regulators (CDKs), immune cell infiltration, and influences cancer-related signaling pathways, suggesting a role in the tumor immune microenvironment and oncogenesis.
Conclusions:
- TOP2A is a significant oncogenic factor in KIRC, KIRP, and KICH.
- TOP2A may serve as a valuable predictive biomarker for patient outcomes and a potential therapeutic target for kidney cancer.
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