ThermoTRP Channel Expression in Cancers - Implications for Diagnosis and Prognosis - Practical Approach by a Pathologist

Sep 24, 2026

Temperature-sensitive transient receptor potential (TRP) channels (“thermoTRPs”) act as multifunctional signaling molecules in cell growth and differentiation. Multiple thermoTRP channels show altered expression in cancers, but the role as cause or consequence of disease remains unresolved. This review argues that altered “ThermoTRP” expression can support cancer diagnosis and prognostication. Examples include distinguishing benign from malignant lesions and predicting clinical outcomes via TRPV1 or TRPM8 expression patterns, and identifying aggressive subgroups with poor prognosis and treatment resistance.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages30

Reading Time1 h 16 min

AccessFree to download

ThermoTRPs: A brief introduction to terminology and biology

TRPV1 and the thermoTRP concept

TRP superfamily structure and subfamilies

TRP channel biology, selectivity, and signaling roles

Review “ThermoTRP” Channel Expression in Cancers: Implications for Diagnosis and Prognosis (Practical Approach by a Pathologist) Arpad Szallasi Citation: Szallasi, A.“ThermoTRP”Channel Expression in Cancers: Implications for Diagnosis and Prognosis (Practical Approach by a Pathologist) . Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 9098. [https://doi.org/10.3390/](https://doi.org/10.3390/)[ ](https://doi.org/10.3390/)ijms24109098 Academic Editor: Alfonso Baldi Received: 21 April 2023 Revised: 16 May 2023 Accepted: 18 May 2023 Published: 22 May 2023 Copyright: © 2023 by the author. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ([https://](https://)[ ](https://)[creativecommons.org/licenses/by/](creativecommons.org/licenses/by/)[ ](creativecommons.org/licenses/by/)[4.0/](4.0/)) . Department of Pathology and Experimental Cancer Research, Semmelweis University, 1085 Budapest, Hungary; [szallasi.arpad@med.semmelweis-univ.hu](szallasi.arpad@med.semmelweis-univ.hu) Abstract: Temperature-sensitive transient receptor potential (TRP) channels (so-called “thermoTRPs”) are multifunctional signaling molecules with important roles in cell growth and differentiation. Several “thermoTRP” channels show altered expression in cancers, though it is unclear if this is a cause or consequence of the disease. Regardless of the underlying pathology, this altered expression may potentially be used for cancer diagnosis and prognostication.“ThermoTRP” expression may distinguish between benign and malignant lesions. For example, TRPV1 is expressed in benign gastric mucosa, but is absent in gastric adenocarcinoma. TRPV1 is also expressed both in normal urothelia and non-invasive papillary urothelial carcinoma, but no TRPV1 expression has been seen in invasive urothelial carcinoma.“ThermoTRP” expression can also be used to predict clinical outcomes. For instance, in prostate cancer, TRPM8 expression predicts aggressive behavior with early metastatic disease. Furthermore, TRPV1 expression can dissect a subset of pulmonary adenocarcinoma patients with bad prognosis and resistance to a number of commonly used chemotherapeutic agents. This review will explore the current state of this rapidly evolving ﬁeld with special emphasis on immunostains that can already be added to the armoire of diagnostic pathologists. Keywords: Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) channel; “thermoTRP”; cancer diagnosis; prognostication 1. TRPs and “ThermoTRPs”: A Brief Introduction to Terminology and Biology Capsaicin is best recognized as the active ingredient in hot chili peppers. Chili pepper is indeed “hot”, because capsaicin and noxious heat activate the very same receptor, now known as transient receptor potential, vanilloid-1, or brieﬂy TRPV1 [1] . The molecular cloning of this receptor earned a Nobel Prize (shared with Ardem Patapoutian) for David Julius in 2021 [2] . TRPV1 is an unusual name for a receptor, and needs some explanation. Vanilloid is used because capsaicin and its ultrapotent analog, resiniferatoxin, share a vanillyl group as a motif essential for bioactivity, but differ completely in the rest of the molecule [3] . The speciﬁc binding of resiniferatoxin to a site shared by capsaicin provided the ﬁrst biochemical proof of the existence of a speciﬁc “vanilloid”(capsaicin) receptor [3] . The term “transient receptor potential”(or brieﬂy, TRP) is related to mutant fruit ﬂies. The eye of wild-type fruit ﬂies responds to sustained light stimuli with a lasting inward current. These mutants, however, respond to light stimuli with a transient current [4,5] . Thus,“transient receptor potential”(TRP) is really a misnomer, since the wild-type receptor, infact, produces a lasting current. Based on its structural similarity to other TRP channels, the vanilloid receptor was assigned to this receptor superfamily, within which it has its own s

FAQs

What are thermoTRPs and why are they important in cancers?

ThermoTRPs are temperature-sensitive transient receptor potential (TRP) channels that act as multifunctional signaling molecules involved in cell growth and differentiation. Several thermoTRP channels show altered expression in cancers, suggesting potential clinical value for diagnosis and prognosis.

How can thermoTRP expression help distinguish benign from malignant lesions?

The review states that thermoTRP expression may discriminate benign versus malignant lesions. For example, TRPV1 is expressed in benign gastric mucosa but is absent in gastric adenocarcinoma, while it is present in normal urothelia and non-invasive papillary urothelial carcinoma but not reported in invasive urothelial carcinoma.

What evidence is described for using thermoTRP expression to predict patient outcomes?

In prostate cancer, TRPM8 expression is described as predicting aggressive behavior with early metastatic disease. In pulmonary adenocarcinoma, TRPV1 expression can identify a subset associated with bad prognosis and resistance to several commonly used chemotherapeutic agents.

Sep 24, 2026

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