HPVTIMER: A shiny web application for tumor immune estimation in human papillomavirus‐associated cancers

Abstract

The tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) is closely associated with tumor formation, particularly linked to the human papillomavirus (HPV), and regulates tumor initiation, proliferation, infiltration, and metastasis. With the rise of immunotherapy, an increasing amount of sample data used for TIME exploration is available in databases. However, no currently available web tool enables a comprehensive exploration of the TIME of HPV‐associated cancers by leveraging these data. We have developed a web tool called HPV‐associated Tumor Immune MicroEnvironment ExploreR (HPVTIMER), which provides a comprehensive analysis platform that integrates over 10,000 genes and 2290 tumor samples from 65 transcriptome data sets across 8 cancer types sourced from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The tool features four built‐in analysis modules, namely, the differential expression analysis module, correlation analysis module, immune infiltration analysis module, and pathway analysis module. These modules enable users to perform systematic and vertical analyses. We used several analytical modules in HPVTIMER to briefly explore the role of CDKN2A in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. We expect that HPVTIMER will help users explore the immune microenvironment of HPV‐associated cancers and uncover potential immune regulatory mechanisms and immunotherapeutic targets. HPVTIMER is available at http://www.hpvtimer.com/.

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Role of body mass index and weight change in the risk of cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis of 66 cohort studies

“…Studies suggest that an increased level of testosterone may be associated with an increased risk of cancer in the prostate [ 114 – 116 ]. In contrast, in individuals with obesity, testosterone levels are typically reduced, which may be detrimental to the growth of tumour cells and tissues in the prostate and thus may lead to a reduced risk of prostate cancer [ 116 – 120 ].…”

Unveiling the Association between HPV and Pan-Cancers: A Bidirectional Two-Sample Mendelian Randomization Study

“…HPVTIMER is a web-based online analysis platform that integrates the expression data from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), including 8 HPV-associated cancers, 65 transcriptomic datasets, 2290 samples, and more than 10,000 genes [28]. Using HPVTIMER, we performed immune infiltration analyses in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) and vulval squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC) to evaluate the tumor immune microenvironment of these tumors.…”