Nucleobindin 2 expression is an independent prognostic factor for clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

Aims Nucleobindin 2 (NUCB2) has been reported to play an important role in both tumorigenesis and cancer progression. This study aimed to examine the clinical significance of NUCB2 expression in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). Methods and results The expression level of NUCB2 and its correlation with clinicopathological parameters was analysed in 188 ccRCC tissues and adjacent non-cancerous tissues by immunohistochemistry. Samples from eight ccRCC patients were examined by Western blotting and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT–PCR). Kaplan–Meier analysis and Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to investigate the correlation between NUCB2 expression and the prognosis of ccRCC patients. The expression level of NUCB2 was found to be significantly higher in ccRCC tumours compared to adjacent non-cancerous tissues using immunohistochemistry, Western blotting and qRT–PCR. Moreover, high NUCB2 tumour expression was associated with high T stage and metastasis and shorter overall survival. Univariate and multivariate analysis confirmed that NUCB2 was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival. Conclusions Our results show that NUCB2 plays an important role in tumorigenesis and progression and is a potential molecular biomarker for the diagnosis and targeted therapy of ccRCC.