Diagnostic and Predictive Value of Immune-Related Genes in Crohn's Disease

• Published in: Frontiers in immunology Vol. 12; p. 643036
• Main Authors: Yu, Bing, Yin, Yi-Xin, Tang, Yan-Ping, Wei, Kang-Lai, Pan, Zhi-Gang, Li, Ke-Zhi, Guo, Xian-Wen, Hu, Bang-Li
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland Frontiers Media S.A 16-04-2021
• Subjects: Crohn’s disease; differentially expressed genes; gene set enrichment analysis; immune-related genes; Immunology; protein-protein interaction; differentially expressed genes; gene set enrichment analysis; protein-protein interaction; immune-related genes; Crohn’s disease
• ISSN: 1664-3224; 1664-3224
• DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.643036

Abnormal immune cell infiltration is associated with the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease (CD). This study aimed to determine the diagnostic and predictive value of immune-related genes in CD. Seven Gene Expression Omnibus datasets that analyzed the gene expression in CD tissues were downloaded. Single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) was used to estimate the infiltration of the immune cells in CD tissues. Immune-related genes were screened by overlapping the immune-related genes with differentially expressed genes (DEGs). The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was used to identify key immune-related DEGs. Diagnostic value of CD and predictive value of anti-TNFα therapy were analyzed. Immunohistochemical (IHC) assay was used to verify gene expression in CD tissues. There were significant differences among CD tissues, paired CD tissues, and normal intestinal tissues regarding the infiltration of immune cells.
,
, and
were identified as the key genes of the three sub-clusters in the PPI network.
,
, and
had mild to moderate diagnostic value in CD, and the diagnostic value of
was better than that of
and
. AQP9 expression was decreased in CD after patients underwent anti-TNFα therapy, but no obvious changes were observed in non-responders.
had a moderate predictive value in patients who had undergone treatment. IHC assay confirmed that the expression of
,
, and
in CD tissues was higher than that in normal intestinal tissues, and
,
was correlated with the activity of CD. Immune-related genes,
,
, and
may act as auxiliary diagnostic indicators for CD, and
could serve as a promising predictive indicator in patients who underwent anti-TNF therapy.