scholarly journals Screening of Hub Genes Associated with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension by Integrated Bioinformatic Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Yu Zeng ◽  
Nanhong Li ◽  
Zhenzhen Zheng ◽  
Riken Chen ◽  
Min Peng ◽  
...  

Background. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a disease or pathophysiological syndrome which has a low survival rate with abnormally elevated pulmonary artery pressure caused by known or unknown reasons. In addition, the pathogenesis of PAH is not fully understood. Therefore, it has become an urgent matter to search for clinical molecular markers of PAH, study the pathogenesis of PAH, and contribute to the development of new science-based PAH diagnosis and targeted treatment methods. Methods. In this study, the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database was used to downloaded a microarray dataset about PAH, and the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between PAH and normal control were screened out. Moreover, we performed the functional enrichment analyses and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analyses of the DEGs. In addition, the prediction of miRNA and transcriptional factor (TF) of hub genes and construction miRNA-TF-hub gene network were performed. Besides, the ROC curve was used to evaluate the diagnostic value of hub genes. Finally, the potential drug targets for the 5 identified hub genes were screened out. Results. 69 DEGs were identified between PAH samples and normal samples. GO and KEGG pathway analyses revealed that these DEGs were mostly enriched in the inflammatory response and cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, respectively. The miRNA-hub genes network was conducted subsequently with 131 miRNAs, 7 TFs, and 5 hub genes (CCL5, CXCL12, VCAM1, CXCR1, and SPP1) which screened out via constructing the PPI network. 17 drugs interacted with 5 hub genes were identified. Conclusions. Through bioinformatic analysis of microarray data sets, 5 hub genes (CCL5, CXCL12, VCAM1, CXCR1, and SPP1) were identified from DEGs between control samples and PAH samples. Studies showed that the five hub genes might play an important role in the development of PAH. These 5 hub genes might be potential biomarkers for diagnosis or targets for the treatment of PAH. In addition, our work also indicated that paying more attention on studies based on these 5 hub genes might help to understand the molecular mechanism of the development of PAH.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suwei Tang ◽  
Ping Xu ◽  
Shaoqiong Xie ◽  
Wencheng Jiang ◽  
Jiajing Lu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Psoriasis is a relatively common autoimmune inflammatory skin disease with a chronic etiology. The present study was designed to detect novel biomarkers and pathways associated with psoriasis incidence. Methods: Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with psoriasis in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were identified, and their functional roles and interactions were then annotated and evaluated through GO, KEGG, and gene set variation (GSVA) analyses. In addition, the STRING database was leveraged to construct a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network, and key hub genes from this network were validated as being relevant through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses of three additional GEO datasets. The CIBERSORT database was additionally used to assess the relationship between these gene expression-related findings and immune cell infiltration. Results: In total 197 psoriasis-related DEGs were identified and found to primarily be associated with the NOD-like receptor, IL-17, and cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction signaling pathways. GSVA revealed significant differences between normal and lesional groups (P < 0.05), while PPI network analyses identified CXCL10 as the hub gene with the highest degree value, whereas IRF7, IFIT3, OAS1, GBP1, and ISG15 were promising candidate genes for the therapeutic treatment of psoriasis. ROC analyses confirmed that these 6 hub genes exhibited good diagnostic efficacy (AUC > 70%), and were predicted to be associated with increased sensitivity to 10 drugs (P < 0.01). The CIBERSORT database further predicted that these hub genes were associated with infiltration by 22 different immune cell types. Conclusion: These results offer a robust foundation for future studies of the molecular basis for psoriasis, potentially guiding efforts to treat this common and disruptive disease.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Chan Li ◽  
Zeyu Zhang ◽  
Qian Xu ◽  
Ruizheng Shi

Introduction. Idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) is a severe cardiopulmonary disease with a relatively low survival rate. Moreover, the pathogenesis of IPAH has not been fully recognized. Thus, comprehensive analyses of miRNA-mRNA network and potential drugs in IPAH are urgent requirements. Methods. Microarray datasets of mRNA and microRNA (miRNA) in IPAH were searched and downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMIs) were identified. Then, the DEMI-DEG network was conducted with associated comprehensive analyses including Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis, and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis, while potential drugs targeting hub genes were investigated using L1000 platform. Results. 30 DEGs and 6 DEMIs were identified in the lung tissue of IPAH. GO and KEGG pathway analyses revealed that these DEGs were mostly enriched in antimicrobial humoral response and African trypanosomiasis, respectively. The DEMI-DEG network was conducted subsequently with 4 DEMIs (hsa-miR-34b-5p, hsa-miR-26b-5p, hsa-miR-205-5p, and hsa-miR-199a-3p) and 16 DEGs, among which 5 DEGs (AQP9, SPP1, END1, VCAM1, and SAA1) were included in the top 10 hub genes of the PPI network. Nimodipine was identified with the highest CMap connectivity score in L1000 platform. Conclusion. Our study conducted a miRNA-mRNA network and identified 4 miRNAs as well as 5 mRNAs which may play important roles in the pathogenesis of IPAH. Moreover, we provided a new insight for future therapies by predicting potential drugs targeting hub genes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xue Qiu ◽  
Jinyan Lin ◽  
Bixiao Liang ◽  
Yanbing Chen ◽  
Guoqun Liu ◽  
...  

ObjectiveThe aim of this study is the identification of hub genes associated with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH).Materials and MethodsGSE15197 gene expression data was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by screening IPAH patients and controls. The 5,000 genes with the greatest variances were analyzed using a weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). Modules with the strongest correlation with IPAH were chosen, followed by a functional enrichment analysis. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) networks were constructed to identify hub gene candidates using calculated degrees. Real hub genes were found from the overlap of DEGs and candidate hub genes. microRNAs (miRNAs) targeting real hub genes were found by screening miRNet 2.0. The most important IPAH miRNAs were identified.ResultsThere were 4,395 DEGs identified. WGCNA indicated that green and brown modules associated most strongly with IPAH. Functional enrichment analysis showed that green and brown module genes were mainly involved in protein digestion and absorption and proteoglycans in cancer, respectively. The top ten candidate hub genes in green and brown modules were identified, respectively. After overlapping with DEGs, 11 real hub genes were identified: EP300, MMP2, CDH2, CDK2, GNG10, ALB, SMC2, DHX15, CUL3, BTBD1, and LTN1. These genes were expressed with significant differences in IPAH versus controls, indicating a high diagnostic ability. The miRNA–gene network showed that hsa-mir-1-3p could associate with IPAH.ConclusionEP300, MMP2, CDH2, CDK2, GNG10, ALB, SMC2, DHX15, CUL3, BTBD1, and LTN1 may play essential roles in IPAH. Predicted miRNA hsa-mir-1-3p could regulate gene expression in IPAH. Such hub genes may contribute to the pathology and progression in IPAH, providing potential diagnostic and therapeutic opportunities for IPAH patients.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Qingqing Ye ◽  
Hongbo Chen ◽  
Hongzhen Ma ◽  
Xiaojun Xiang ◽  
Shouci Hu ◽  
...  

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is responsible for significant mortality among hospitalized patients that is especially troubling aged people. An effective self-made Chinese medicine formula, Xiaoyu Xiezhuo Drink (XXD), displayed therapeutic effects on AKI. However, the compositions and underlying mechanisms of XXD remain to be elucidated. In this study, we used the ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography method coupled with hybrid triple quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS) to investigate the chemical components in XXD. Then, the absorbable components of XXD were identified based on the five principles and inputted into the SwissTargetPrediction and STITCH databases to identify the drug targets. AKI-related targets were collected from the GenCLiP 3, GeneCards, and DisGeNET databases. The crossover genes of XXD and AKI were identified for functional enrichment analysis. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of crossover genes was constructed, followed by the identification of hub genes. Subsequently, the effects and potential mechanisms of XXD on AKI predicted by the network pharmacology and bioinformatics analyses were experimentally validated in ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury-induced AKI aged mouse models. A total of 122 components in XXD were obtained; among them, 58 components were found that could be absorbed in the blood. There were 800 potential drug targets predicted from the 58 absorbable components in AKI which shared 36 crossover genes with AKI-related targets. The results of functional enrichment analysis indicated that crossover genes mostly associated with the response to oxidative stress and the HIF1 signaling pathway. In the PPI network analysis, 12 hub genes were identified, including ALB, IL-6, TNF, TP53, VEGFA, PTGS2, TLR4, NOS3, EGFR, PPARG, HIF1A, and HMOX1. In AKI aged mice, XXD prominently alleviated I/R injury-induced renal dysfunction, abnormal renal pathological changes, and cellular senescence, inflammation, and oxidative damage with a reduction in the expression level of the inflammatory mediator, α-SMA, collagen-1, F4/80, TP53, VEGFA, PTGS2, TLR4, NOS3, EGFR, PPARG, HIF1A, ICAM-1, TGF-β1, Smad3, and p-Smad3 and an increase of nephridial tissue p-H3, Ki67, HMOX1, MMP-9, and Smad7 levels. In summary, our findings suggest that XXD has renoprotective effects against AKI in aged mice via inhibiting the TGF-β1/Smad3 and HIF1 signaling pathways.


Genes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1247
Author(s):  
Anna Ulrich ◽  
Pablo Otero-Núñez ◽  
John Wharton ◽  
Emilia M. Swietlik ◽  
Stefan Gräf ◽  
...  

Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) can provide a link between disease susceptibility variants discovered by genetic association studies and biology. To date, eQTL mapping studies have been primarily conducted in healthy individuals from population-based cohorts. Genetic effects have been known to be context-specific and vary with changing environmental stimuli. We conducted a transcriptome- and genome-wide eQTL mapping study in a cohort of patients with idiopathic or heritable pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) using RNA sequencing (RNAseq) data from whole blood. We sought confirmation from three published population-based eQTL studies, including the GTEx Project, and followed up potentially novel eQTL not observed in the general population. In total, we identified 2314 eQTL of which 90% were cis-acting and 75% were confirmed by at least one of the published studies. While we observed a higher GWAS trait colocalization rate among confirmed eQTL, colocalisation rate of novel eQTL reported for lung-related phenotypes was twice as high as that of confirmed eQTL. Functional enrichment analysis of genes with novel eQTL in PAH highlighted immune-related processes, a suspected contributor to PAH. These potentially novel eQTL specific to or active in PAH could be useful in understanding genetic risk factors for other diseases that share common mechanisms with PAH.


2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (12) ◽  
pp. 975-986 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chi-yuan Zhang ◽  
Mo liu ◽  
Jia-ming Wan ◽  
Ming-qi Gao ◽  
Yue Zhang ◽  
...  

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a devastating disease without effective drugs available for its treatment. An in-depth exploration of the pathogenesis of PAH, as well as inquiry into potential therapeutic targets, remains an urgent issue. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have arisen as key players in malignant tumors, cardiovascular diseases and more recently in PAH progression and development. Network pharmacology is a new discipline based on system biology, which can predict potential therapeutic targets in diseases regulated by multiple genes. In this review, we discuss the current knowledge of ncRNAs and network pharmacology regulated genes involved in PAH, as well as the search for potential drug targets for PAH.


2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. E45-54
Author(s):  
Chao Tan ◽  
Fang Zuo ◽  
Mingqian Lu ◽  
Sai Chen ◽  
Zhenzhen Tian ◽  
...  

Purpose: This study aimed to identify potential diagnostic and therapeutic biomakers for the development ofbreast cancer (BC). Methods: GSE86374 dataset containing 159 samples was acquired from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database followed by differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identification and cluster analysis. Corresponding functional enrichment and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analyses were performed to identify hub genes. Prognostic evaluation using clinical information obtained from TCGA database and hub genes was conducted to screen for crucial indicators for BC progression. The risk model was established and validated. Results: In total, 186 DEGs were identified and grouped into four clusters: 96 in cluster 1; 69 in cluster 2; 16 in  cluster 3; and 5 in cluster 4. Functional enrichment analysis showed that DEGs, including ADH1B in cluster 1,  were dramatically enriched in the tyrosine and drug metabolism pathways, while genes in cluster 2, including  SPP1 and RRM2, played crucial roles in PI3K-Akt and p53 signalling pathway. SPP1 and RRM2 served as hub  genes in the PPI network, resulting in an support vector machine classifier with good accuracy and specificity.Ad ditionally, the results of prognostic analysis suggest that age, metastasis stage, SPP1 and ADH1B were correlated with risk of BC, which was validated by using the established risk model analysis. Conclusion: SPP1, RRM2 and ADH1B appear to play vital roles in the development of BC. Age and TNM stage  were also preferentially associated with risk of developing BC. Evaluation of the risk model based on larger sample size and further experimental validation are required.


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