AccScience Publishing / Bladder / Online First / DOI: 10.14440/bladder.2024.0071
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RESEARCH ARTICLE

SPEF1 and SPEF2 as potential biomarkers in bladder cancer: Insights from a comprehensive bioinformatic analysis

Mohamed A. A. A. Hegazi1 ,  Fabio Pasqualini1 ,  Maurizio Chiriva-Internati2 ,  Gianluigi Taverna3 ,  Fabio Grizzi1,4*
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1 Department of Immunology and Inflammation, IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital, Rozzano, Milan 20089, Italy
2 Departments of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Division of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, United States
3 Department of Urology, Humanitas Mater Domini, Castellanza, Varese 21100, Italy
4 Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Pieve Emanuele, Milan 20090, Italy
Bladder, e21200039 https://doi.org/10.14440/bladder.2024.0071
Submitted: 2 December 2024 | Revised: 13 January 2025 | Accepted: 27 February 2025 | Published: 11 April 2025
© 2025 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
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Abstract

Background: Bladder cancer (BLCA) remains a prevalent and complex malignancy characterized by significant heterogeneity. Treatment strategies are diverse, based on patient characteristics and cancer stage. Early identification of biomarkers is crucial for improving diagnosis, staging, and treatment planning. These biomarkers offer valuable insights into lesion features, tumor differentiation, and disease progression, thereby playing a pivotal role in the personalized management of BLCA. Objective: This study investigated the expression of cancer-testis antigens SPEF1 and SPEF2 in BLCA using comprehensive bioinformatic analyses to assess their potential as biomarkers. Methods: The UALCAN database, based on The Cancer Genome Atlas datasets, was employed to compare SPEF1 and SPEF2 expression levels in normal bladder tissues and BLCA samples. In addition, the Kaplan–Meier Plotter, OncoDB, and TIMER 2.0 platforms were utilized to evaluate the prognostic and immunotherapeutic relevance of these antigens. Results: The findings suggest that SPEF1 and SPEF2 are integral to various biological processes driving BLCA onset and progression. Both genes appear to facilitate BLCA cell progression and migration, contributing to poor prognosis through specific pathways and by altering tumor microenvironment. Notably, SPEF1 expression was significantly upregulated in BLCA tissues compared to normal tissues. Conversely, higher SPEF2 expression was associated with longer overall survival and positively correlated with immunotherapeutic targets. Conclusion: Although these results were derived from in silico analyses, they offer insights into the potential roles of SPEF1 and SPEF2 as biomarkers. Further studies are warranted to validate these biomarkers in retrospective patient cohorts to establish their clinical utility.

Keywords
Bladder
Cancer
Cancer-testis antigens
SPEF1
SPEF2
Biomarkers
Survival
Funding
None.
Conflict of interest
The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
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Bladder, Electronic ISSN: 2327-2120 Print ISSN: TBA, Published by POL Scientific
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