Identification of potential biomarkers of gout through competitive endogenous RNA network analysis.
Gout is a widespread inflammatory arthritis. The present study aimed to identify potential biomarkers of gout and explore their underlying mechanisms through bioinformatics methods.
The microarray data was downloaded from the GSE160170 dataset from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, and the GEO2R online tool was used to obtain differentially expressed genes (DEGs). We searched for gout-related genes through the DisGeNET and GeneCards databases, and the final DEGs was acquired by intersection with the DEGs obtained from the microarray dataset. Tissue- and organ-specific genes were identified by the BioGPS online tool. Enrichment analysis was performed using GSEA4.1.0 and KOBAS3.0, and a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed using STRING to understand the biological functions and enrichment pathways of the DEGs as well as to identify their hub genes. Cytoscape was used to construct the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks.
A total of 653 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) and 818 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs) were identified in the present study. After intersecting the differential DEGs from the dataset, 85 DEGs were obtained. Enrichment analyses showed that the DEGs were mainly enriched in the following biological processes (BPs): inflammation and regulation; immune response; and cell proliferation and apoptosis. Moreover, the DEGs were mainly enriched in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), osteoclast differentiation, interleukin (IL)-17 signaling pathway, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signaling pathway, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) signaling pathway. Cytoscape software identified 15 hub genes, and the following 9 hub genes were obtained after intersecting with genes specifically expressed in the blood/immune and bone/muscle systems: TNF, JUN, PTGS2, STAT1, IL6, FOS, IL1β, CXCL8 and CD80. In addition, the lncRNA-NEAT1-miR-142-3p-IL-6 pathway may be a key regulatory pathway in the pathogenesis of gout.
The present study indicated that the identified 9 hub genes may be potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of gout. In addition, the results suggested that the lncRNA-NEAT1-miR-142-3p-IL-6 pathway may be a potential RNA regulatory pathway that controls the progression of gout disease.
Li Y
,Huang C
,Yang Z
,Wang L
,Luo D
,Qi L
,Li Z
,Huang Y
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Integrated mRNA-miRNA transcriptome profiling of blood immune responses potentially related to pulmonary fibrosis in forest musk deer.
Forest musk deer (FMD, Moschus Berezovskii) is a critically endangered species world-widely, the death of which can be caused by pulmonary disease in the farm. Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) was a huge threat to the health and survival of captive FMD. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) have been involved in the regulation of immune genes and disease development. However, the regulatory profiles of mRNAs and miRNAs involved in immune regulation of FMD are unclear.
In this study, mRNA-seq and miRNA-seq in blood were performed to constructed coexpression regulatory networks between PF and healthy groups of FMD. The hub immune- and apoptosis-related genes in the PF blood of FMD were explored through Gene Ontology (GO) and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis. Further, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of immune-associated and apoptosis-associated key signaling pathways were constructed based on mRNA-miRNA in the PF blood of the FMD. Immune hub DEGs and immune hub DEmiRNAs were selected for experimental verification using RT-qPCR.
A total of 2744 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 356 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs) were identified in the PF blood group compared to the healthy blood group. Among them, 42 DEmiRNAs were negatively correlated with 20 immune DEGs from a total of 57 correlations. The DEGs were significantly associated with pathways related to CD molecules, immune disease, immune system, cytokine receptors, T cell receptor signaling pathway, Th1 and Th2 cell differentiation, cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, intestinal immune network for IgA production, and NOD-like receptor signaling pathway. There were 240 immune-related DEGs, in which 186 immune-related DEGs were up-regulated and 54 immune-related DEGs were down-regulated. In the protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis of immune-related signaling pathway, TYK2, TLR2, TLR4, IL18, CSF1, CXCL13, LCK, ITGB2, PIK3CB, HCK, CD40, CD86, CCL3, CCR7, IL2RA, TLR3, and IL4R were identified as the hub immune genes. The mRNA-miRNA coregulation analysis showed that let-7d, miR-324-3p, miR-760, miR-185, miR-149, miR-149-5p, and miR-1842-5p are key miRNAs that target DEGs involved in immune disease, immune system and immunoregulation.
The development and occurrence of PF were significantly influenced by the immune-related and apoptosis-related genes present in PF blood. mRNAs and miRNAs associated with the development and occurrence of PF in the FMD.
Qi WH
,Hu LF
,Gu YJ
,Zhang XY
,Jiang XM
,Li WJ
,Qi JS
,Xiao GS
,Jie H
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《Frontiers in Immunology》
Regulatory Role of miRNAs and lncRNAs in Gout.
To explore the regulatory functions of ceRNA networks in the nosogenesis of gout and search for potential therapeutic targets.
We searched the GEO database and downloaded the lncRNA microarray chipset GSE160170. This matrix series was analyzed to yield differentially expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs. Then, the correlations between lncRNAs and miRNAs were obtained by comparing the highly conserved miRNA families. The predicted miRNA-regulating mRNAs were matched to the differentially expressed mRNAs from the chipset analyses to obtain miRNA-mRNA interactions. Next, we used the Cytoscape software to model ceRNA networks and the STRING database to determine their protein-protein interactions. The R software was used to algorithmically screen the functional pathways of key PPI modules in the ceRNA networks.
A total of 354 lncRNAs (140 downregulated and 214 upregulated) and 693 mRNAs (399 downregulated and 294 upregulated) were differentially expressed between the gout group and the healthy group. The ceRNA network of differentially expressed lncRNAs contained 86 lncRNAs (35 downregulated and 51 upregulated), 29 miRNAs, and 57 mRNAs. The processes identified in the GO enrichment analysis included gene transcription, RNA polymerase II transcription, and the regulation of cell growth and apoptosis. The pathways identified in the KEGG enrichment analysis included IL-17, TNF, and MAPK signaling. Nine lncRNAs (AC104024, AC084082, AC083843, FAM182A, AC022819, FAM215B, AP000525, TTTY10, and ZNF346-IT1), eleven miRNAs (hsa-miR-1297, hsa-miR-17-5p, hsa-miR-429, hsa-miR-139-5p, hsa-miR-449c-5p, hsa-miR-125a-5p, hsa-miR-125b-5p, hsa-miR-23b-3p, hsa-miR-217, hsa-miR-363-3p, and hsa-miR-20b-5p), and nine mRNAs (JUN, CASP2, PMAIP1, FOS, TNFAIP3, MAP3K8, BTG2, NR4A2, and DUSP2) were identified in the exploration of the key modules.
Characterization of ceRNA networks could be a promising approach for better understanding the pathogenesis of gout, with the TTTY10/hsa-miR-139-5p/AP-1 axis likely to be of clinical significance.
Shu J
,Chen M
,Ya C
,Yang R
,Li F
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