Identification of KRBA2 as a probable prognostic biomarker correlated with immune infiltration in kidney clear cell carcinoma

Background Renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC) is a major subtype of renal cell carcinoma. Because of its rapid progression and resistance to targeted therapies, KIRC poses a significant threat to human health. KRBA2, a member of the KRBA family, is recognized as a transcription factor. Nevertheless, limited research has focused on the effect of KRBA2 in KIRC. Materials and methods The Cancer Genome Atlas database was utilized to analyze the expression of KRBA2 in KIRC, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to validate KRBA2 mRNA expression in clinical KIRC samples and KIRC cell lines. The correlation between KRBA2 expression and clinicopathological features was determined via the Wilcoxon rank sum test. Next, we assessed the prognostic value of KRBA2 in patients with KIRC using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. The association between KRBA2 expression and immune infiltration in KIRC was investigated using the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource. Results Our research demonstrated that KRBA2 expression was downregulated in KIRC and was correlated with multiple clinicopathological characteristics. Low KRBA2 expression was associated with poorer overall survival, progression-free interval, and disease-specific survival. Enrichment analysis suggested that KRBA2 was related to immune processes and the cell cycle, and Tumor Immune Estimation Resource analysis indicated that KRBA2 expression correlated with immune infiltration levels and immune characteristics of multiple immune cells. Conclusions These findings suggest that KRBA2 may serve as a potential prognostic biomarker associated with KIRC immunity and could be a promising target for KIRC diagnosis and treatment.