AUTHOR=Yang Yue , Fu Yujuan , Sheng Siyu , Ji Chunlei , Pu Xinyi , Xu Guangyu 

TITLE=Screening for diagnostic targets in tuberculosis and study on its pathogenic mechanism based on mRNA sequencing technology and miRNA-mRNA-pathway regulatory network

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=Volume 14 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2023.1038647

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2023.1038647

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=Purpose: Tuberculosis is a common infectious diseases, characterized by infectivity, concealment and chronicity, and the early diagnosis is helpful to block the spread of tuberculosis and reduce the resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis to anti-tuberculosis drugs. At present, there are obvious limitations in the application of clinical detection methods used for the early diagnosis of tuberculosis. RNA sequencing of peripheral blood (RNA-Seq), as a new gene sequencing method, is easier to screen new diagnostic targets of tuberculosis and is expected to improve the early diagnosis rate of tuberculosis.
Methods: A peripheral blood mRNA sequencing was used to screen the differentially expressed genes between healthy people and tuberculosis patients. A PPI network of differentially expressed genes was constructed through STRING database. The potential diagnostic targets of tuberculosis were screened by the calculation of degree, betweenness and closeness in Cytoscape 3.9.1 software. Finally, the functional pathways and the molecular mechanism of tuberculosis were clarified in combination of the prediction results of key gene miRNA, and by Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis and the Kyoto Encyclopedia Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway annotation analysis.
Results: 556 Differential genes of tuberculosis were screened out by mRNA sequencing. Six key genes (AKT1, TP53, EGF, ARF1, CD274 and PRKCZ) were screened as the potential diagnostic targets for tuberculosis by analyzing the PPI regulatory network and using three algorithms. Three pathways related to the pathogenicity of tuberculosis were identified by KEGG pathway analysis, and two key miRNAs (has-miR-150-5p and has-miR-25-3p) that might participate in the pathogenesis of tuberculosis were screened out by constructing a miRNA-mRNA pathway regulatory network.
Conclusion: Six key genes and two important miRNAs that could regulate them were screened out by mRNA sequencing. The 6 key genes and 2 important miRNAs may participate in the pathogenesis of infection and invasion of Mycobacterium tuberculosis through herpes simplex virus 1 infection, endocytosis and B cell receptor signaling pathways.