基于RNA测序分析子宫内膜异位症的病灶特异性基因及其诊断价值

Identification of lesion-specific genes and their diagnostic potential in endometriosis via RNA sequencing

  • 摘要: 背景 子宫内膜异位症发病机制尚不明确,诊断仍依赖于腹腔镜探查及组织病理学检查,导致诊断延迟,缺乏早期诊断标志物。目的 研究子宫内膜异位症患者异位内膜及在位内膜组织与非EMs患者正常内膜组织的差异表达基因,分析其相关基因和关键信号通路,初步探索其在子宫内膜异位症中的诊断价值。方法 收集7 对EMs患者的异位内膜、在位内膜组织及5 例非EMs患者的正常内膜组织行RNA测序,应用生物信息学技术分析三者间的DEGs,并进行基因本体论、京都基因与基因组百科全书通路分析、蛋白质互作网络构建。采用实时荧光定量PCR在临床样本中进行验证,通过基因表达数据库构建受试者工作特征曲线评估各基因的诊断价值。结果 共发现98 个显著DEGs,其中31 个差异基因表达上调,67 个差异基因表达下调。KEGG结果显示PI3K-Akt 信号通路可能参与子宫内膜异位症的发生。在临床样本和公共数据库中,C7、ITGA11、JCHAIN、LTF、NR4A3、NTRK2 在EMs异位病灶组织中特异性高表达,且C7、ITGA11、NTRK2 展现出作为诊断生物标志物的巨大潜力,其曲线下面积值均超过0.90。结论 本研究首次发现ITGA11 在EMs病灶中特异性高表达,可能通过PI3K-Akt 通路促进疾病进展,揭示其作为诊断标志物的潜力,后续需在经血等无创样本中进行验证以推动临床应用。

     

    Abstract: Background The pathogenesis of endometriosis (EMs) remains incompletely elucidated, and its diagnosis continues to depend on laparoscopic exploration combined with histopathological examination, resulting in diagnostic delays and the absence of reliable early diagnostic biomarkers. Objective To investigate the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between ectopic endometrium and eutopic endometrium from patients with EMs and normal endometrium from non-EMs patients. The study aims to analyze the key genes and signaling pathways involved, and to explore their diagnostic value for endometriosis.Methods  Paired samples of ectopic and eutopic endometrium were collected from 7 patients with EMs, along with normal endometrium from 5 non-EMs for RNA sequencing. DEGs were found by bioinformatics technology, and Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis and protein-protein interaction network. The expression levels of partial DEGs were verified in paired clinical specimens via Quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases were compared to evaluate the diagnostic values of each gene. Results We screened 98 significant DEGs, of which 31 were up-regulated and 67 were downregulated. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that PI3K-Akt signal pathway might be involved in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. In both clinical samples and public databases, the genes C7, ITGA11, JCHAIN, LTF, NR4A3, and NTRK2 were significantly upregulated in EMs (P<0.01). Among them, C7, ITGA11 and NTRK2 demonstrated significant potential as diagnostic biomarkers, with Area Under the Curve (AUC) values all exceeding 0.90.Conclusion In conclusion, this study for the first time reveals that ITGA11 is specifically overexpressed in endometriotic lesions and may promote disease progression by activating the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway. These findings highlight its potential as a novel diagnostic biomarker, warranting further validation in non-invasive samples such as menstrual blood to facilitate clinical translation.

     

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