Department of Preventive Health Care, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University.
Genes Genet Syst. 2021 Mar 23;95(6):315-321. doi: 10.1266/ggs.20-00031. Epub 2021 Feb 28.
Asthma is one of the most common diseases, with a high prevalence among children. To date, systemic co-expression analysis for this disease has not been undertaken to explain its pathogenesis. Here we identified differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in 87 samples, and then constructed co-expression modules via weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and investigated the functional enrichment of co-expressed genes in terms of Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG). Meanwhile, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and miRNA-transcription factor-target (miRNA-TF-target) regulatory network analyses were performed to screen hub genes. As a result, 3,469 DEGs were identified in this study, of which 1,860 genes were up-regulated and 1,609 genes were down-regulated. Using WGCNA, we identified two key modules, named MEbrown and MEblue, that may play important roles in asthma. Functional enrichment analysis revealed that MEbrown was enriched in 37 KEGG pathways and 472 biological processes (BPs), while MEblue was enriched in 16 KEGG pathways and 449 BPs. From PPI and miRNA-TF-target regulatory network analysis, a total of 31 TFs, seven miRNAs and 28 nodes were identified. Our findings should provide a framework of therapeutic targets for treating children with acute asthma.
哮喘是最常见的疾病之一，在儿童中发病率很高。迄今为止，尚未对这种疾病进行系统的共表达分析，以解释其发病机制。在这里，我们鉴定了 87 个样本中的差异表达基因（DEGs），然后通过加权基因共表达网络分析（WGCNA）构建共表达模块，并研究了共表达基因在基因本体论和京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）中的功能富集情况。同时，进行了蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用（PPI）网络和 miRNA-转录因子-靶（miRNA-TF-target）调控网络分析，以筛选枢纽基因。结果，本研究共鉴定出 3469 个 DEGs，其中 1860 个基因上调，1609 个基因下调。通过 WGCNA，我们鉴定了两个关键模块，分别命名为 MEbrown 和 MEblue，它们可能在哮喘中发挥重要作用。功能富集分析表明，MEbrown 富集了 37 条 KEGG 通路和 472 个生物过程（BP），而 MEblue 富集了 16 条 KEGG 通路和 449 个 BP。从 PPI 和 miRNA-TF-target 调控网络分析中，共鉴定出 31 个转录因子、7 个 miRNA 和 28 个节点。我们的研究结果应该为治疗儿童急性哮喘提供治疗靶点的框架。
