FGF2
Overview
FGF2 (basic fibroblast growth factor) encodes a ligand that activates FGF receptors to drive proliferation, survival, and angiogenesis. In pilocytic astrocytoma, FGF2 is significantly overexpressed compared to other astrocytomas and normal tissue, implicating autocrine/paracrine FGFR signaling as a mechanism of MAPK pathway activation independent of receptor mutation or BRAF fusion status.
Alterations observed in the corpus
- Significantly increased expression in pilocytic astrocytoma compared to other astrocytomas and normal brain tissue; overexpression is not restricted to FGFR1-mutant tumors, suggesting ligand-mediated MAPK activation operates broadly across the entity PMID:23817572
Cancer types (linked)
- Pilocytic astrocytoma — FGF2 overexpression identified as a mechanism of MAPK pathway activation complementary to BRAF fusions and FGFR1 kinase-domain mutations PMID:23817572
Co-occurrence and mutual exclusivity
- FGF2 overexpression occurs independently of FGFR1 mutation status; may provide ligand-driven receptor activation in BRAF-fusion-positive tumors as well PMID:23817572
Therapeutic relevance
- FGFR inhibition is a rational strategy in pilocytic astrocytoma; FGF2 overexpression suggests that blocking the receptor (FGFR1) may be more effective than targeting the ligand PMID:23817572
Open questions
- Whether FGF2 overexpression is a driver or a passenger/reactive phenomenon in pilocytic astrocytoma has not been experimentally resolved PMID:23817572
Sources
This page was processed by crosslinker on 2026-05-09.