Macrophage Infiltration and ITGB2 Expression in ESCC: A Novel Correlation

ABSTRACT Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), one of the most prevalent and deadliest malignancies today, still presents significant limitations in the application and efficacy of immunotherapy. In this study, we comprehensively utilized high-throughput sequencing, gene chips, single-cell sequencing, and various bioinformatics analysis methods to uncover, for the first time, a positive correlation between the infiltration level of macrophages and the expression of ITGB2 in ESCC.ITGB2 is overexpressed in ESCC and holds immense potential as a prognostic marker for ESCC. As ESCC progresses, the expression of ITGB2 increases within infiltrating macrophages. We also proposed for the first time that the expression of ITGB2 in macrophages continues to increase as macrophages shift towards a pro-tumor phenotype. We found that evaluating the immune therapy response in ESCC patients using ITGB2 is feasible, and higher expression of ITGB2 correlates with increased feasibility of targeting macrophages. Additionally, we identified three miRNAs associated with aberrant expression of ITGB2, providing references for further exploration of upstream molecules of ITGB2.