Effect of Chuanzhifang component (ZGC) on macrophage inflammatory injury based on whole gene expression profile

Objective: The effect of Chuanzhi Fang (ZGC) on the whole genome expression profile of RAW264.7 cells activated by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was analyzed, and to explore the possible mechanism of action and core target of this formula on macrophage inflammatory injury at the overall level. Methods: A model of LPS-induced inflammation in RAW264.7 cells was constructed, and the effect of ZGC intervention on the genome-wide expression of inflammatory macrophages 3was examined by gene microarray technology, GO/KEGG enrichment analysis was performed for significantly differentially expressed genes among each group. Results: The results of genome-wide expression profiling microarray analysis showed that the ZGC intervention group upregulated the expression of 5 genes including C4bp and inhibited the expression of 22 genes including Mgat3, Psma6, and Siglecg relative to the LPS model group. KEGG signaling pathway analysis results showed that ZGC mainly acted through cytokine receptor interaction and the C-type lectin receptor signaling pathway. Conclusion: ZGC can interfere with the abnormal expression of 27 genes in inflammatory macrophages, and the related genes may exert corresponding anti-inflammatory effects by affecting cytokine receptor interactions, C-type lectin receptor signaling pathway, and TLR4/ NF-κB signaling pathway.

Analysis of gene expression profiles in pancreatic carcinoma by using cDNA microarray

OBJECTIVES: To survey the gene expression profiles in pancreatic carcinoma by using cDNA microarray and detect target genes for further study. METHODS: Three mixed samples from 2 cases of normal pancreatic tissue and 4 cases of moderate-differentiated pancreatic carcinoma were studied by means of cDNA microarray consisting of 18 000 genes. RESULTS: 1484 and 1353 different expressed genes were observed in two cancer samples respectively. We identified 455 genes altered with the same tendency in both samples, including 102 up-regulated and 353 down-regulated genes. There were 274 known genes and 181 unknown genes; 27.8% and 52.0% genes respectively had an expression level in cancer that was 2-fold higher or lower than that in normal samples. Tumor suppressor genes, growth factors and receptor genes, signal conduction genes, transcription factor genes were identified. CONCLUSIONS: cDNA microarray is an efficient and high-throughout method to investigate gene expression profiles in pancreatic carcinoma. MBD1, EDG1 and gene hypermethylation mechanism would play an important role in the pathogenesis of pancreatic carcinoma.

Differential Gene Expression Profiles in Acute Hepatic Failure Model in Mice Infected with MHV-3 Virus Intervened by Anti-hepatic Failure Compound

Differential gene expression profiles in Balb/cJ mouse model of acute hepatic failure infected with MHV-3 virus intervened by anti-hepatic failure compound （AHFC） and the changes of cytokines regulated by genes were investigated. The Balb/cj mice were divided into AHFC-intervened group and control group randomly. Acute hepatic failure model of Balb/cJ mice infected with MHV-3 virus was established. The survival rate in the two groups was observed. It was found that the survival rate in the AHFC-intervened group and control group was 90% and 50% respectively 48 h after intraperitoneal injection of MHV-3 （P〈0.05）. Before and after the experiment, the cytokines in peripheral blood of the survival mice were determined, and RNA was extracted from survival mouse liver tissue for the analysis of the differential gene expression by a 36 kb mouse oligonuleotide DNA array. In all the genes of microarray there were 332 genes expressed differently in the two groups, in which 234 genes were up-regulated and 78 genes down-regulated. Through clustering analysis, the differential expression of immune related genes, including TNF receptor superfamily, Kctd9, Bcl-2, Fgl2, IL-8, IL-6, IFN-7, TNF-α etc. might be related with the curative effectiveness of AHFC. It was suggested that AHFC can balance the immune state of mouse model of acute hepatic failure infected with MHV-3 virus mainly through regulating the expression of immune related genes, decrease the immune damage and inhibit liver cell apoptosis of mouse acute hepatic failure model obviously so as to increase the survival rate of mouse models of acute hepatic failure.

Analysis of hippocampal gene expression profile of Alzheimer's disease model rats using genome chip bioinformatics

In this study, an Alzheimer＇s disease model was established in rats through stereotactic injection of condensed amyloid beta 1-40 into the bilateral hippocampus, and the changes of gene expression profile in the hippocampus of rat models and sham-operated rats were compared by genome expression profiling analysis. Results showed that the expression of 50 genes was significantly up-regulated （fold change 〉 2）, while 21 genes were significantly down-regulated in the hippocampus of Alzheimer＇s disease model rats （fold change 〈 0.5） compared with the sham-operation group. The differentially expressed genes are involved in many functions, such as brain nerve system development, neuronal differentiation and functional regulation, cellular growth, differentiation and apoptosis, synaptogenesis and plasticity, inflammatory and immune responses, ion channels/transporters, signal transduction, cell material/energy metabolism. Our findings indicate that several genes were abnormally expressed in the metabolic and signal transduction pathways in the hippocampus of amyloid beta 1 40-induced rat model of Alzheimer＇s disease, thereby affecting the hippocampal and brain functions.

Immune Responses to Trichloroethylene and Skin Gene Expression Profiles in Sprague Dawley Rats

Objective To characterize the immune reaction in SD rats exposed to trichloroethylene （TCE） and to identify the gene expression profiles involved in skin after TCE exposure. Methods Fifteen percent of TCE was injected intradermally into the rat back （100 μL/120 g） at intervals of 7 days. Whole blood was collected 24 h after the fifth or seventh intradermic administration of TCE. The percentages of CD4＋ and CD8＋ of T lymphocytes were measured by a flow cytometer. The concentrations of IFN-gamma and 1L-4 in the serum were semi-quantified by ELISA. Total RNAs of skin samples at 3 h or 24 h after the seventh dose of TCE in SD rats were extracted, and gene expression proftles of these tissues were analyszed by rat toxicology U34 array of Affymetrix. Results Obvious decline of CD4＋ in T lymphocytes was observed in the TCE-administer group. No significant concentration differences in IFN-gamma and IL-4 were found between TCE-treated and control rats. Gadd45a and Mel were significantly up regulated in skin tissue 24 h after TCE exposure. The expression regulation of immune response factors was as active as proteins associated with lipid metabolism and synthesis process in these skin samples of SD rats exposed to TCE. Conclusion T-helper type 1 cells mediate immune response can not be elicited in TCE-treated SD rats, but certain immune disorder can be induced.

THE GENE EXPRESSION PROFILE OF HIGHLY METASTATIC HUMAN OVARIAN CANCER CELL LINE BY GENE CHIP

Objective: To study the gene expression of high metastatic human ovarian carcinoma cell line (HO-8910PM) and to screen for novel metastasis- associated genes by cDNA microarray. Methods: The cDNA was retro-transcribed from equal quantity mRNA derived from tissues of highly metastatic ovarian carcinoma cell line and normal ovarian, and was labeled with Cy5 and Cy3 fluorescence as probes. The mixed probes were hybridized with BioDoor 4096 double dot human whole gene chip. The chip was scanned by scanArray 3000 laser scanner. The acquired image was analyzed by ImaGene 3.0 software. Results: By applying the cDNA microarray we found: A total of 323 genes whose expression level were 3 times higher or lower in HO-8910PM cell than normal ovarian epithelium cell were screened out, with 71 higher and 252 lower respectively. Among these 10 were new genes. 67 genes showed expression difference bigger than 6 times between HO-8910PM cell and normal ovarian epithelium cell, among these genes 12 were higher, 55 lower, and two new genes were found. Conclusion: cDNA microarray technique is effective in screening the differentially expressed genes between human ovarian cancer cell line (HO-8910PM) and normal ovarian epithelium cell. Using the cDNA microarray to analyze of human ovarian cancer cell line gene expression profile difference will help the gene diagnosis, treatment and protection.

Analysis of Gene Expression Profile in Lung Adenosquamous Carcinoma Using cDNA Microarray

Gene expression profile of the lung adenosquamous carcinoma was characterized by using cDNA microarray chip containing 4 096 human genes. Among target genes, 508 differentially expressed genes were identified in adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung, 232 genes were overexpressed and 276 genes were underexpressed. Among them, 92 genes are cell signals transduction genes, 34 genes are proto-oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes or cell cycle related genes or cell apoptosis related genes, 29 genes are cell skeleton genes, 28 genes are DNA synthesis, repair and recombination genes, 12 genes are DNA binding and transcription genes. These genes may be associated with the occurence and development of adenosquamous carinome of the lung. Key words lung carcinoma - adenosquamous carcinoma - microarray - gene expression profile CLC number R 734.2 Foundation item: Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (39870305)Biography: YANG Fei(1972-), female, Ph. D candidate, research direction: etiology and pathogenesis of lung cancer.

Gene expression profile analysis reveals the effect of metformin treatment on HepG2 cells

Metformin is a first-line drug in the fight against type 2 diabetes.In recent years,studies have shown that metformin has some preventive and therapeutic effects on liver cancer,but the effects of metformin on the gene expression of liver cancer cells are not fully known.This study focused on the differences in the gene expression profiles in liver cancer cells treated with or without metformin.A total of 153 differentially expressed genes(DEGs)(FC>2 and q-values<0.001)were found,including 77 upregulated genes and 76 downregulated genes.These DEGs are involved in mitogen-activated protein kinase(MAPK),nuclear factor-kappa B(NF-κB),cell adhesion molecules(CAMs),and leukocyte transendothelial migration signaling pathways.These findings reveal the effects of metformin treatment on gene expression profiles in liver cancer cells and provide new clues for unveiling the mechanism of the antitumor effects of metformin.

Difference of Gene Expression Profiles between Barrett’s Esophagus and Cardia Intestinal Metaplasia by Gene Chip

The difference of gene expression profile changes in Barrett＇s esophagus （BE） and cardia intestinal metaplasia （CIM） epithelium was studied and the novel associated genes were screened in the early stage by cDNA microarray. The cDNA retro-transcribed from equal quantity mRNA from BE and CIM epithelial tissues were labeled with Cy3 and Cy5 fluorescence as probes. The mixed probe was hybridized with three pieces BiostarH-40s double dot human whole gene chip. The chips were scanned with a ScanArray 4000. The acquired images were analyzed using GenePix Pro 3.0 software. It was found a total of 141 genes were screened out that exhibited differentially expression more than 2 times in all three chips. It was identified that in gene expression profiles of BE, 74 genes were up-regulated and 67 down-regulated as compared with CIM. The comparison between the difference of gene expression profile changes in BE and CIM epithelia revealed that there existed the difference between BE and CIM at gene level. 141 genes with the expression more than two time were probably related to the occurrence and development of BE and the promotion or progress in adenocarcinoma.

Study on the effect of Baiban Ointment on the whole gene expression profile of vulvar sclerosing lichen

Objective:To study the effect of Baiban Ointment on gene expression profile of vulvar lichen sclerosus before and after treatment,and to provide theoretical basis for the early diagnosis and clinical treatment of vulvar lichen sclerosus.Methods:Nine patients with vulvar lichen sclerosus diagnosed pathologically were selected as the study object,and the Baiban ointment was applied locally for 3 months.Gene chip technology was used to detect the vulva skin tissue in the same area before and after treatment,and the peripheral normal skin was used as the normal control group to analyze the change of gene expression profile.FC and P values were used as research indicators,and the standard of differential expression was FC value≥1.5,P value<0.05.The differentially expressed genes were screened,and GO analysis and KEGG database gene pathway analysis were carried out.Results:Compared with the normal control group,there were 22 differentially expressed genes in Group A before treatment,of which 21 were up-regulated and 1 was down regulated;compared with Group B before treatment,there were 23 differentially expressed genes,all of which were up regulated.The differentially expressed genes related to Baiban ointment treatment included TBK1、STAT1、ITGAM、VCAN、PRKACB、PROM1、PLAT、SERPINA1.Go analysis showed that the up-regulated differential genes were mainly concentrated in the extracellular exosome,cytosol,extracellular space,Golgi apparatus and other cellular component,using the biological process such as positive regulation of cell metabolism,signal transduction regulation,cell adhesion,etc.,to play a role in protein binding,enzyme activity regulation and other molecular functions.KEGG signaling pathway showed that the differentially expressed genes were significantly enriched in Toll like receptor signaling pathway,Nod like receptor signaling pathway and Fc RI signaling pathway,all of which were up-regulated signaling pathways.Among them,Toll like receptor signaling pathway and Nod like receptor signaling pathway are most closely related to the disease.Conclusion:Baiban ointment may play a role in regulating metabolism,inflammation and immune response by regulating the expression of related genes,affecting the signal transduction such as Toll like receptor signal pathway.The pathway and the genes screened in this study will provide a direction for the future study of this disease.

Differential Gene Expression Profiles in Coronary Heart Disease Patients of Blood Stasis Syndrome in Traditional Chinese Medicine and Clinical Role of Target Gene

Objective:To investigate the differential gene expression profiles in coronary heart disease(CHD) patients of blood-stasis syndrome(BSS) by oligonucleotide microarray technique,and the clinical significance of target gene.Methods:Subjects were assigned to CHD patients with BSS(n=8),CHD patients without BSS (n=8),and BSS patients without CHD(n=8) based on coronary angiography and the diagnostic criteria of BSS. The sex- and age-matched healthy volunteers(n=8) were enrolled as the control group.Venous blood s...

Effects of Panaxadiol Saponins Component as A New Chinese Patent Medicine on Proliferation,Differentiation and Corresponding Gene Expression Profile of Megakaryocytes

Objective： To investigate the effects of panaxadiol saponins component （PDS-C） isolated from total saponins of panax ginseng on proliferation, differentiation and corresponding gone expression profile of megakaryocytes. Methods： Bone marrow culture of colony forming assay of megakaryocytic progenitor cells （CFU-MK） was observed for the promoting proliferation mediated by PDS-C, and differentiation of megakaryocytic blasts caused by PDS-C was analyzed with flow cytometry in CHRF-288 and Meg-01 cells, as well as proliferation, differentiation-related genes expression profile and protein expression levels were detected by human gone expression microarray and western blot. Results： In response to PDS-C 10, 20 and 50 mg/L, CFU-MK from 10 human bone marrow samples was increased by 28.9± 2.7%, 41.0% ± 3.2% and 40.5% ± 2.6% over untreated control, respectively （P〈0.01, each）. Flow cytometry analysis showed that PDS-C treated CHRF-288 cells and Meg-01 cells significantly increased in CD42b, CD41, TSP and CD36 positive ratio, respectively. PDS-C induced 29 genes up-regulated more than two-fold commonly in both cells detected by human expression microarray representing 4000 known genes. The protein expression levels of ZNF91, c-Fos, BTF3a, GATA-1, RGS2, NDRG2 and RUNX1 were increased with western blot in correspond to microarray results. Conclusion： PDS-C as an effective component for hematopoiesis, play the role to enhance proliferation and differentiation of megakaryocytes, also up-regulated expression of proliferation, differentiation-related genes and proteins in vitro. KEYWORDS panaxadiol saponins, megakaryocyte, gone expression profile, proliferation, differentiation

Effects of emodin on gene expression profile in small cell lung cancer NCI-H446 cells

Background The treatment of patients with small cell lung cancer （SCLC） is based on chemotherapy. However, the treatment is limited by the development of drug resistance. Emodin has been shown to exhibit an anti-cancer effect. But the molecular mechanism remains unclear. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of emodin on the gene expression profile changes in SCLC NCI-H446 cells. Methods NCI-H446 cells were treated with emodin and cell viability was determined by MTT assay. Cell apoptosis was determined by both flow cytometry and caspase-3 activity assay. The effect of emodin on the gene expression profile of NCI-H446 cells was analyzed using cDNA microarray. Semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR） was used to validate the microarray results. Results Emodin suppressed viability, induced apoptosis and changed cell cycle of NCI-H446 cells. Among the 1262 genes, 10 genes were up-regulated and 8 genes were down-regulated more than 2 folds in NCI-H446 cells when compared with the control cells after treatment with emodin for 12 hours, while 12 genes were up-regulated and 24 genes were down-regulated after treatment with emodin for 24 hours. These genes were involved in metabolism, signal transduction, transcription regulation, cytoskeleton organization, immune response, transport, protein synthesis, cell cycle control, cell adhesion and RNA processing. The RT-PCR results were consistent with those obtained by the microarray. Conclusions Emodin affects the expression of genes involved in various cellular functions and plays important roles in cell apoptosis, tumor metastasis and chemotherapy-resistance, which suggests emodin might become an effective chemopreventive or chemotherapeutic agent for SCLC.

Study on the Effect of Youguiyin(右归饮) on Regulating Gene Expression Profile of the Rats with Femoral Head Necrosis Induced by Steroid

Objective： To observe the regulation of Youguiyin （YGY, 右归钦） on the gene expression profile of the rat with steroid-induced femoral head necrosis （sFHN）, for the sake of investigating its molecular mechanism of sFHN prevention and treatment. Methods： All the 30 rats were randomly divided into three groups, the normal control group （A）, the model control group （B）, and the YGY treated group （C）, 10 in each group. After rats in Groups B and C were being made into FHN models with steroid injection, they received a daily intragastdc administration of saline and YGY respectively in equal volume for a total of 6 weeks, while to the unmodeled normal rats in Group A, saline was administered instead. The rats were sacrificed at the terminal of administration; their mRNA from femoral head tissue was extracted and prepared to cDNA probe through inverse transcription for detecting gene expression profile by microarray, outcomes of which was passing fluorescence quantitative PCR verification, and the differential expressed genes were analyzed adopting gene ontology （GO） method. Results： Compared with Group A, the numbers of differential genes found in Groups B and C were 190 and 92, respectively, but the changing trend in the two groups was opposite, mainly manifested as down-regulating in Group B/Group A （GB/GA） and up-regulating in Group C/Group B （GC/GB）. The analysis showed that these differential genes were mainly assigned to cell apoptosis, signal transduction, metabolism, cell proliferation and differentiation, cell cycle, blood coagulation, antioxidant activity, etc. Conclusions： sFHN was regulated by various genes; the regulation of YGY on expressions of these genes and the intra]extra-cellular signaling processes was possibly the molecular mechanism of YGY for preventing/treating sFHN. This study gave an explanation to the effectiveness of Chinese medicine in preventing/treating FHN from aspects of gene expression and enriched the Chinese medicine theory of ＂Kidney （Shen） governing bones＂.

Correlation between cold and hot pattern in traditional Chinese medicine and gene expression profiles in rheumatoid arthritis

Clinical manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis(RA)are diversified,and based on the manifestations,the patients with RA could be classified into different patterns under traditional Chinese medicine.These patterns decide the selection of herbal prescription,and thus they can help find a subset of rheumatoid arthritis patients for a type of therapy.In the present study,we combine genome-wide expression analysis with methods of systems biology to identify the functional gene networks for the sets of clinical symptoms that comprise the major information for pattern classification.Clinical manifestations in rheumatoid arthritis were clustered with factor analysis,and two factors(similar to cold and hot patterns in traditional Chinese medicine)were found.Microarray technology was used to reveal gene expression profiles in CD4^(+)T cells from 21 rheumatoid arthritis patients.Protein-protein interaction information for these genes from databases and literature data was searched.The highly-connected regions were detected to infer significant complexes or pathways in this protein-protein interaction network.The significant pathways and function were extracted from these subnetworks using the Biological Network Gene Ontology tool.The genes significantly related to hot and cold patterns were identified by correlations analysis.MAPK signalling pathway,Wnt signaling pathway,and insulin signaling pathway were found to be related to hot pattern.Purine metabolism was related to both hot and cold patterns.Alanine,aspartate,and tyrosine metabolism were related to cold pattern,and histindine metabolism and lysine degradation were related to hot pattern.The results suggest that cold and hot patterns in traditional Chinese medicine were related to different pathways,and the network analysis might be used for identifying the pattern classification in other diseases.

Gene expression profiles in intracranial aneurysms

In this study, we extracted total RNA from 15 intracranial aneurysms and 17 superficial temporal artery samples, then performed genome-wide expression profiling using the Affymetrix U133 Plus 2.0 GeneChip. Genes that were differentially expressed between intracranial aneurysms and arterial samples were identified using significance analysis for microarrays, and the expression patterns of three randomly-selected genes were verified by real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis. We identified 3 736 differentially-expressed genes out of the 47 000 assayed transcripts. A total of 179 genes showed a 〉10-fold change in expression between the aneurysms and the arterial samples. Genes involved in the proliferation, migration, and apoptosis of vascular muscle cells, atherosclerosis, extracellular matrix disruption, and inflammatory reactions were associated with the formation of intracranial aneurysms. There were no significant differences in gene expression profile between unruptured and ruptured aneurysms.

cDNA macroarray for analysis of gene expression profiles in prostate cancer

Background Early diagnosis and timely treatment are important for improving therapeutic efficiency of prostate cancer. DNA array is a new bio-technology for disease diagnosis. This study was conducted to diagnose prostate cancer with cDNA macroarray and analysis gene expression profiles of some selective genes in prostate cancer. Methods Total RNA was isolated from patients with prostate cancer and from normal people, and poly（A） RNA was further purified. Then it was analyzed for differentially expressed genes in prostate cancer and normal prostate by cDNA macroarray system. Results There were different expressions in the nine prostate-associated specific genes in prostate cancer as compared with normal prostate, in which, 7 were significantly upregulated and 2 were down-regulated. Conclusion As a diagnostic approach at molecular level, the cDNA macroarray is an effectively diagnostic method for orostate cancer.

Effect of Tiantai No.1(天泰1号)on Gene Expression Profiles in Hippocampus of Alzheimer's Disease Rats by Bioinformatic Analysis

Objective： To study the effect of Tiantai No. 1 （天泰1号） on gene expression profile in hippocampus of Alzheimer＇s disease （AD） rat, molecular genetic target points of the effect of this drug were defined, its molecular genetic pharmacodynamic mechanism of anti-AD was further explored at molecular gene level, and a scientific basis was provided for its clinical availability and promotion. Methods： Thirty male Sprague- Dawley rats were divided into three groups with 10 rats per group： sham-operation group, model group and Tiantai No. 1 group. Sterile surgical procedure was applied, the model group with bilateral hippocampal injection of Aβ21-40 was established, and normal saline was used instead of Aβ1-40 in the sham-operation group. One week after the models was made, rats were administered by gastric lavage once every day for three consecutive weeks. The rats of the sham-operation group and the model group were daily fed with purified water by lavage; the rats of the Tiantai No.1 group treated group were administered with Tiantai No.1 by lavage. Total RNAs of hippocampus tissues were extracted with Trizol, the changes of hippocampus gene expression profiles in the above throe groups were analyzed by using Affymetrix rat whole genome expression profile microarray. Results： Microarray analysis showed that, compared with the sham-operation group, the hippocampus of the model group had 50 up-regulated genes with significant difference （fold change 〉2）, and 21 down-rogulated genes with significant difference （fold change 〈0.5）; compared with the hippocampus of the model group, the hippocampus of the Tiantai No. 1 group was found to have 5 up-regulated genes with significant difference （fold change 〉2） and 20 down-regulated genes with significant difference （fold change 〈0.5）. The functions of differonUally expressed genes of the groups were involved in nervous system＇s development, neuronic differentiation and function-regulation, cellular growth and differentiation and apoptosis, synaptic occurrence and plasticity, inflammation and immune response, ion channels/transporters, cellular signal transduction, cellular material/energy metabolism and so on. Conclusion： Tiantai No. 1 can regulate hippocampal function, and further regulate the brain function of animals in multiple gene target points by a number of ways.

Expression Profile of Metastasis-associated Genes in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

The differentially expressed genes between esophageal squamous cell carcinoma （ESCC） with or without lymphatic metastasis were investigated by gene chip, and the lymphatic metastasisassociated genes were screened out. Expression array was used to detect the mRNA from both the primary carcinoma and the corresponding esophageal epithelium in 15 cases of human ESCC. The lymphatic metastasis-associated genes were screened by bioinformatics between ESCC with or without lymphatic metastasis. The results showed that 43 （4. 85 %） genes significantly differed between the ESCC with and without lymphatic metastasis （P〈0.05）, of which 18（2.03 %）were upregulated and 25 （2.82 %） down-regulated. The up-regulated genes were involved in cell adhesion molecules and cell membrane receptors and the down-regulated genes were mostly cell cycle regulators and intracellular signaling molecules. It was suggested that lymphatic metastasis-associated genes were screened by gene chip, which was helpful to understand the molecular mechanism of ESCC lymphatic metastasis and lymphatic metastasis-associated genes might be used as diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets for lymphatic metastasis.

Identifying genetic susceptibility to Aspergillus fumigatus infection using collaborative cross mice and RNA-Seq approach

Background:Aspergillus fumigatus(Af)is one of the most ubiquitous fungi and its infection potency is suggested to be strongly controlled by the host genetic back-ground.The aim of this study was to search for candidate genes associated with host susceptibility to Aspergillus fumigatus(Af)using an RNAseq approach in CC lines and hepatic gene expression.Methods:We studied 31 male mice from 25 CC lines at 8 weeks old;the mice were infected with Af.Liver tissues were extracted from these mice 5 days post-infection,and next-generation RNA-sequencing(RNAseq)was performed.The GENE-E analysis platform was used to generate a clustered heat map matrix.Results:Significant variation in body weight changes between CC lines was ob-served.Hepatic gene expression revealed 12 top prioritized candidate genes differ-entially expressed in resistant versus susceptible mice based on body weight changes.Interestingly,three candidate genes are located within genomic intervals of the previ-ously mapped quantitative trait loci(QTL),including Gm16270 and Stox1 on chromo-some 10 and Gm11033 on chromosome 8.Conclusions:Our findings emphasize the CC mouse model's power in fine mapping the genetic components underlying susceptibility towards Af.As a next step,eQTL analysis will be performed for our RNA-Seq data.Suggested candidate genes from our study will be further assessed with a human cohort with aspergillosis.