| HGNC Family | Chemokine ligands (CCL), Endogenous ligands |
| Name | chemokine (C motif) ligand 2 |
| Description | Predicted to enable CCR chemokine receptor binding activity and chemokine activity. Predicted to be involved in several processes, including antimicrobial humoral immune response mediated by antimicrobial peptide; chemokine-mediated signaling pathway; and eosinophil chemotaxis. Predicted to be located in extracellular region. Predicted to be active in extracellular space. [provided by Alliance of Genome Resources, Mar 2025] |
| Summary |
{"type": "root", "children": [{"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nXCL2 is a chemokine of the C subfamily that has recently emerged as an important modulator in immune responses. In one study, the mycobacterial protein Wag31 was shown to bind to and stimulate the expression of XCL2 in macrophages, suggesting that this chemokine contributes to the recruitment of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in the context of infection. This finding indicates that XCL2 might help orchestrate cell‐mediated immunity during Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "1"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n\n"}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nBiophysical and in vitro functional analyses have further characterized XCL2’s dual nature. Structural studies revealed that, despite a high similarity to its paralog XCL1, XCL2 exists in two interchangeable conformations under physiological conditions. The monomeric form is primarily responsible for activating its G protein‐coupled receptor, whereas the dimeric form preferentially mediates glycosaminoglycan (GAG) binding with a slightly higher heparin affinity than XCL1. These properties not only underscore its role in triggering cytotoxic T cell responses but also hint at subtle regulatory nuances encoded at the level of expression."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "2"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n\n"}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nIn addition to its immunomodulatory activity, aberrant expression of XCL2 has been associated with various pathological conditions. In lung cancers, increased expression of XCL2 was correlated with higher pathological stages and greater numbers of metastatic lymph nodes, pointing to a potential role in cancer progression and as a target for gene therapy."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "4"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " In clear cell renal cell carcinoma, XCL2 has been identified as a novel tumor‐related gene with up‐regulated expression, further supporting its involvement in oncogenesis."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "5"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " Moreover, genetic studies have implicated XCL2 variants in the risk of developing knee osteoarthritis in specific populations, suggesting that its functional impact extends to inflammatory and degenerative diseases."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "6"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n"}]}, {"type": "rg", "children": [{"type": "r", "ref": 1, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Wei Cao, Shuai Tang, Hanying Yuan, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigen Wag31 induces expression of C-chemokine XCL2 in macrophages."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Curr Microbiol (2008)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1007/s00284-008-9172-2"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-008-9172-2"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "18618175"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18618175"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 2, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Jamie C Fox, Takashi Nakayama, Robert C Tyler, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Structural and agonist properties of XCL2, the other member of the C-chemokine subfamily."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cytokine (2015)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1016/j.cyto.2014.11.010"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cyto.2014.11.010"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "25497737"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25497737"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 3, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Wu Chen, Fan Zou, Tianbao Song, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Comprehensive analysis reveals XCL2 as a cancer prognosis and immune infiltration-related biomarker."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Aging (Albany NY) (2023)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.18632/aging.205156"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.205156"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "37905956"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37905956"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 4, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Bing Zhou, Heyun Xu, Kewei Ni, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Expression of Chemokine XCL2 and CX3CL1 in Lung Cancer."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Med Sci Monit (2016)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.12659/msm.895985"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.12659/msm.895985"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "27156946"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27156946"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 5, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Qingqiong Cao, Daoquan Liu, Zhao Chen, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Upregulated X-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (XCL2) is associated with poor prognosis and increased immune infiltration in clear cell renal cell carcinoma."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cell Signal (2023)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1016/j.cellsig.2022.110556"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cellsig.2022.110556"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "36503163"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36503163"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 6, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cheng Wang, Ruichun Zhang "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "The effect of ITLN1, XCL2 and DOT1L variants on knee osteoarthritis risk in the Han population."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Arch Orthop Trauma Surg (2023)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1007/s00402-023-04799-w"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1007/s00402-023-04799-w"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "36773049"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36773049"}]}]}]}
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| Synonyms | SCM1B, SCM-1B, SCYC2 |
| Proteins | XCL2_HUMAN |
| NCBI Gene ID | 6846 |
| API | |
| Download Associations | |
| Predicted Functions |
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| Co-expressed Genes |
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| Expression in Tissues and Cell Lines |
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XCL2 has 1,749 functional associations with biological entities spanning 8 categories (molecular profile, organism, functional term, phrase or reference, disease, phenotype or trait, chemical, structural feature, cell line, cell type or tissue, gene, protein or microRNA) extracted from 78 datasets.
Click the + buttons to view associations for XCL2 from the datasets below.
If available, associations are ranked by standardized value
| Dataset | Summary | |
|---|---|---|
| Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles | tissue samples with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| Allen Brain Atlas Prenatal Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissues from the Allen Brain Atlas Prenatal Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| CCLE Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles | cell lines with high or low copy number of XCL2 gene relative to other cell lines from the CCLE Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset. | |
| CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations | cell types associated with XCL2 gene from the CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations dataset. | |
| ChEA Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles | transcription factor binding site profiles with transcription factor binding evidence at the promoter of XCL2 gene from the CHEA Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles dataset. | |
| ChEA Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors binding the promoter of XCL2 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| ChEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 | transcription factors binding the promoter of XCL2 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 dataset. | |
| COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores | cellular components containing XCL2 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores | cellular components co-occuring with XCL2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 | cellular components co-occuring with XCL2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles | cell lines with high or low copy number of XCL2 gene relative to other cell lines from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset. | |
| COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles | cell lines with XCL2 gene mutations from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles dataset. | |
| DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency | cell lines with fitness changed by XCL2 gene knockdown relative to other cell lines from the DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency dataset. | |
| DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025 | diseases associated with XCL2 gene in GWAS datasets from the DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores | diseases co-occuring with XCL2 gene in abstracts of biomedical publications from the DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025 | diseases co-occuring with XCL2 gene in abstracts of biomedical publications from the DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations | diseases associated with XCL2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations dataset. | |
| ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles | histone modification site profiles with high histone modification abundance at XCL2 gene from the ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles dataset. | |
| ENCODE Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles | transcription factor binding site profiles with transcription factor binding evidence at the promoter of XCL2 gene from the ENCODE Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles dataset. | |
| ENCODE Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors binding the promoter of XCL2 gene in ChIP-seq datasets from the ENCODE Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| GDSC Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles | cell lines with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other cell lines from the GDSC Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| GeneRIF Biological Term Annotations | biological terms co-occuring with XCL2 gene in literature-supported statements describing functions of genes from the GeneRIF Biological Term Annotations dataset. | |
| GeneSigDB Published Gene Signatures | PubMedIDs of publications reporting gene signatures containing XCL2 from the GeneSigDB Published Gene Signatures dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Diseases | disease perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Diseases dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations | gene perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Kinase Perturbations | kinase perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Kinase Perturbations dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules | small molecule perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Transcription Factor Perturbations | transcription factor perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Transcription Factor Perturbations dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Viral Infections | virus perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Viral Infections dataset. | |
| GO Biological Process Annotations 2015 | biological processes involving XCL2 gene from the curated GO Biological Process Annotations 2015 dataset. | |
| GO Biological Process Annotations 2023 | biological processes involving XCL2 gene from the curated GO Biological Process Annotations 2023 dataset. | |
| GO Biological Process Annotations 2025 | biological processes involving XCL2 gene from the curated GO Biological Process Annotations2025 dataset. | |
| GO Cellular Component Annotations 2015 | cellular components containing XCL2 protein from the curated GO Cellular Component Annotations 2015 dataset. | |
| GO Molecular Function Annotations 2015 | molecular functions performed by XCL2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2015 dataset. | |
| GO Molecular Function Annotations 2023 | molecular functions performed by XCL2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2023 dataset. | |
| GO Molecular Function Annotations 2025 | molecular functions performed by XCL2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2025 dataset. | |
| GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissues from the GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles 2023 | tissues with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissues from the GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles 2023 dataset. | |
| GTEx Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles | tissue samples with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the GTEx Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations 2025 | phenotypes associated with XCL2 gene in GWAS datasets from the GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations 2025 dataset. | |
| Heiser et al., PNAS, 2011 Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles | cell lines with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other cell lines from the Heiser et al., PNAS, 2011 Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| HPA Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissues from the HPA Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| HPA Tissue Protein Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of XCL2 protein relative to other tissues from the HPA Tissue Protein Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| HPA Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles | tissue samples with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the HPA Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| HuBMAP ASCT+B Annotations | cell types associated with XCL2 gene from the HuBMAP ASCT+B dataset. | |
| HuBMAP ASCT+B Augmented with RNA-seq Coexpression | cell types associated with XCL2 gene from the HuBMAP ASCT+B Augmented with RNA-seq Coexpression dataset. | |
| HuBMAP Azimuth Cell Type Annotations | cell types associated with XCL2 gene from the HuBMAP Azimuth Cell Type Annotations dataset. | |
| InterPro Predicted Protein Domain Annotations | protein domains predicted for XCL2 protein from the InterPro Predicted Protein Domain Annotations dataset. | |
| JASPAR Predicted Human Transcription Factor Targets 2025 | transcription factors regulating expression of XCL2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the JASPAR Predicted Human Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| JASPAR Predicted Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors regulating expression of XCL2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the JASPAR Predicted Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| KEGG Pathways | pathways involving XCL2 protein from the KEGG Pathways dataset. | |
| KEGG Pathways 2026 | pathways involving XCL2 protein from the KEGG Pathways 2026 dataset. | |
| Klijn et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 2015 Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles | cell lines with high or low copy number of XCL2 gene relative to other cell lines from the Klijn et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 2015 Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset. | |
| Klijn et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 2015 Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles | cell lines with XCL2 gene mutations from the Klijn et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 2015 Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles dataset. | |
| KnockTF Gene Expression Profiles with Transcription Factor Perturbations | transcription factor perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the KnockTF Gene Expression Profiles with Transcription Factor Perturbations dataset. | |
| LOCATE Predicted Protein Localization Annotations | cellular components predicted to contain XCL2 protein from the LOCATE Predicted Protein Localization Annotations dataset. | |
| MGI Mouse Phenotype Associations 2023 | phenotypes of transgenic mice caused by XCL2 gene mutations from the MGI Mouse Phenotype Associations 2023 dataset. | |
| MotifMap Predicted Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors regulating expression of XCL2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the MotifMap Predicted Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| MSigDB Cancer Gene Co-expression Modules | co-expressed genes for XCL2 from the MSigDB Cancer Gene Co-expression Modules dataset. | |
| MSigDB Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Cancer Gene Perturbations | gene perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the MSigDB Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Cancer Gene Perturbations dataset. | |
| NIBR DRUG-seq U2OS MoA Box Gene Expression Profiles | drug perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the NIBR DRUG-seq U2OS MoA Box dataset. | |
| Pathway Commons Protein-Protein Interactions | interacting proteins for XCL2 from the Pathway Commons Protein-Protein Interactions dataset. | |
| PerturbAtlas Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations | gene perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the PerturbAtlas Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations dataset. | |
| PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2023 | pathways involving XCL2 protein from the PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2023 dataset. | |
| PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2024 | pathways involving XCL2 protein from the Wikipathways PFOCR 2024 dataset. | |
| Reactome Pathways 2014 | pathways involving XCL2 protein from the Reactome Pathways dataset. | |
| Reactome Pathways 2024 | pathways involving XCL2 protein from the Reactome Pathways 2024 dataset. | |
| Roadmap Epigenomics Histone Modification Site Profiles | histone modification site profiles with high histone modification abundance at XCL2 gene from the Roadmap Epigenomics Histone Modification Site Profiles dataset. | |
| RummaGEO Drug Perturbation Signatures | drug perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the RummaGEO Drug Perturbation Signatures dataset. | |
| RummaGEO Gene Perturbation Signatures | gene perturbations changing expression of XCL2 gene from the RummaGEO Gene Perturbation Signatures dataset. | |
| Tabula Sapiens Gene-Cell Associations | cell types with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other cell types from the Tabula Sapiens Gene-Cell Associations dataset. | |
| TargetScan Predicted Nonconserved microRNA Targets | microRNAs regulating expression of XCL2 gene predicted using nonconserved miRNA seed sequences from the TargetScan Predicted Nonconserved microRNA Targets dataset. | |
| TCGA Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Tumors | tissue samples with high or low expression of XCL2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the TCGA Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Tumors dataset. | |
| TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores | tissues with high expression of XCL2 protein from the TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 | tissues with high expression of XCL2 protein from the TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores | tissues co-occuring with XCL2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 | tissues co-occuring with XCL2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| WikiPathways Pathways 2024 | pathways involving XCL2 protein from the WikiPathways Pathways 2024 dataset. | |
