Transcriptomic responses of peripheral blood cells to coronary artery disease

Identification of CXC Chemokine Receptor 2 (CXCR2) as a Novel Eosinophils-Independent Diagnostic Biomarker of Pediatric Eosinophilic Esophagitis by Integrated Bioinformatic and Machine-Learning Analysis

Background

Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a complex allergic condition frequently accompanied by various atopic comorbidities in children, which significantly affects their life qualities. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate pivotal molecular markers that may facilitate the diagnosis of EoE in pediatric patients.

Methods

Three available EoE-associated gene expression datasets in children: GSE184182, GSE 197702, GSE55794, along with GSE173895 were downloaded from the GEO database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identified by "limma" were intersected with key module genes identified by weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), and the shared genes went through functional enrichment analysis. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and the machine learning algorithms: least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), random forest (RF), and XGBoost were used to reveal candidate diagnostic markers for EoE. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed the efficacy of differential diagnosis of this marker, along with online databases predicting its molecular regulatory network. Finally, we performed gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) and assessed immune cell infiltration of EoE/control samples by using the CIBERSORT algorithm. The correlations between the key diagnostic biomarker and immune cells were also investigated.

Results

The intersection of 936 DEGs and 1446 key module genes in EoE generated 567 genes, which were primarily enriched in immune regulation. Following the construction of the PPI network and filtration by machine learning, CXCR2 served as a potential diagnostic biomarker of pediatric EoE with a perfect diagnostic efficacy (AUC = ~1.00) in regional tissue/peripheral whole blood samples. Multiple infiltrated immune cells were observed to participate in disrupting the homeostasis of esophageal epithelium to varying degrees.

Conclusion

The immune-correlated CXCR2 gene was proved to be a promising diagnostic indicator for EoE, and dysregulated regulatory T cells (Tregs)/neutrophils might play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of EoE in children.

Coronary Artery Disease and Inflammatory Activation Interfere with Peripheral Tissue Electrical Impedance Spectroscopy Characteristics-Initial Report

BACKGROUND

The electrical properties of cells and tissues in relation to energy exposure have been investigated, presenting their resistance and capacitance characteristics. The dielectric response to radiofrequency fields exhibits polarization heterogeneity under pathological conditions. The aim of the study was to analyze the differences in changes in resistance and capacitance measurements in the range from 1 kHz to 1 MHz, combined with an assessment of the correlation between the results of electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and inflammatory activation.

METHODS

In the prospective study, EIS was performed on the non-dominant arm in 29 male patients (median (Q1-Q3) age of 69 (65-72)) with complex coronary artery disease and 10 male patients (median (Q1-Q3) age of 66 (62-69)) of the control group. Blood samples were collected for inflammatory index analysis.

RESULTS

The logistic regression analysis revealed a negative correlation with inflammatory indexes, including neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in the CAD group in the frequency of 30 kHz (p = 0.038, r = -0.317) regarding EIS resistance measurements and a positive correlation in CAD group in the frequency of 10 kHz (p = 0.029, r = -0.354) regarding EIS capacitance.

CONCLUSIONS

The bioelectric characteristics of peripheral tissues measured by resistance and capacitance in EIS differ in patients with coronary artery disease and in the control group. Electrical impedance spectroscopy reveals a statistically significant correlation with inflammatory markers in patients with CAD.

Circulating microRNAs as predictive biomarkers of coronary artery diseases in type 2 diabetes patients

BACKGROUND

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is an increasing metabolic disorder mostly resulting from unhealthy lifestyles. T2DM patients are prone to develop heart conditions such as coronary artery disease (CAD) which is a major cause of death in the world. Most clinical symptoms emerge at the advanced stages of CAD; therefore, establishing new biomarkers detectable in the early stages of the disease is crucial to enhance the efficiency of treatment. Recently, a significant body of evidence has shown alteration in miRNA levels associate with dysregulated gene expression occurring in T2DM and CAD, highlighting significance of circulating miRNAs in early detection of CAD arising from T2DM. Therefore, it seems crucial to establish a link between the miRNAs prognosing value and development of CAD in T2DM.

AIM

This study provides an overview on the alterations of the circulatory miRNAs in T2DM and various CADs and consider the potentials of miRNAs as biomarkers prognosing CADs in T2DM patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Literature search was conducted for miRNAs involved in development of T2DM and CAD using the following key words: "miRNAs", "Biomarker", "Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 (T2DM)", "coronary artery diseases (CAD)". Articles written in the English language.

RESULT

There has been shown a rise in miR-375, miR-9, miR-30a-5p, miR-150, miR-9, miR-29a, miR-30d, miR-34a, miR-124a, miR-146a, miR-27a, and miR-320a in T2DM; whereas, miR-126, miR-21, miR-103, miR-28-3p, miR-15a, miR-145, miR-375, miR-223 have been shown to decrease. In addition to T2DM, some miRNAs such as mirR-1, miR-122, miR-132, and miR-133 play a part in development of subclinical aortic atherosclerosis associated with metabolic syndrome. Some miRNAs increase in both T2DM and CAD such as miR-1, miR-132, miR-133, and miR-373-3-p. More interestingly, some of these miRNAs such as miR-92a elevate years before emerging CAD in T2DM.

CONCLUSION

dysregulation of miRNAs plays outstanding roles in development of T2DM and CAD. Also, elevation of some miRNAs such as miR-92a in T2DM patients can efficiently prognose development of CAD in these patients, so these miRNAs can be used as biomarkers in this regard.