Abstract
BACKGROUND: B-cell translocation gene 2 (BTG2) has been revealed to be involved in the occurrence and development of multiple cancers. However, the role of BTG2 in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is still ambiguous. Thus, this study aims to investigate the prognostic value of BTG2 and its correlation with immune infiltration in LUAD. METHODS: The expression of BTG2 in LUAD was analyzed using the TIMER and UALCAN databases. The correlations between BTG2 expression and clinicopathological factors were investigated using the UALCAN databases. The Kaplan-Meier plotter, GEPIA, and TCGA databases were employed to assess the prognostic value of BTG2. The STRING database and Cytoscape software were used to construct an interaction network and mine co-expression genes. The TISIDB database was examined for a correlation between BTG2 and driver genes in LUAD. Enrichment analysis of co-expressed genes and BTG2 was performed using the LinkedOmics database. Finally, the correlations between BTG2 and immune infiltrates were investigated using the TIMER, GEO, and TISIDB database. RESULTS: BTG2 was significantly downregulated in LUAD. The decreased expression of BTG2 in LUAD was significantly correlated with higher cancer stages and shorter duration of overall survival. The expressions of BTG2-related co-expression genes were associated with the prognosis in LUAD. The expression of BTG2 was closely associated with the mutations of TP53 and ROS1. Enrichment analysis revealed that BTG2 was significantly correlated with immune-associated signaling pathways and function. In addition, the expression of BTG2 was found to be closely related to immune infiltration, multiple gene markers of immune cells, chemokines, and chemokine receptors. CONCLUSION: Our findings have effectively demonstrated that BTG2 expression was downregulated in LUAD, indicating poor prognosis. Closely relating to immune cell infiltration, BTG2 may be a promising immune-related biomarker and molecular target for patients with LUAD.