Abstract:Objective To investigate the expressions of high mobility group box 1 protein (HMGB1) and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) in renal carcinoma tissue and their relationship with clinic pathological characteristics of renal carcinoma. Methods The expressions of HMGB1 and MMP9 in 67 patients with renal carcinoma were determined using real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry. Statistical analysis was then conducted using Person, Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards analyses. Results The expressions of HMGB1 and MMP9 in the carcinoma tissues were higher than those in the para-carcinoma tissues, and closely related to TNM stage, lymph node ratio and diameter of tumor. The life time of the patients with low expressions of HMGB1 and MMP9 was longer than the patients with high expressions. The expressions of HMGB1 and MMP9 were negatively correlated with the prognosis. HMGB1, MMP9, TNM stage and lymph node metastasis were independent risk factors for the prognosis of renal carcinoma. Conclusions HMGB1 and MMP9 may play crucial roles in the infiltration and metastasis of renal carcinoma. Joint detection of HMGB1 and MMP9 in renal carcinoma tissues may help to evaluate the prognosis of patients.