Transcriptomics Analyses of Umbilical Cord Tissue Highlight the Contribution of Low Birth Weight to the Early Development of Cardiomyopathy
Razieh Fatehi, Sedigheh Momenzadeh, Sima Jafarpour, Nasimeh VatandoostAbstract
Background:
Low birth weight (LBW) infants display a great susceptibility to developing cardiovascular disease (CVD), metabolic disorder, and other conditions in later life. Umbilical cord tissue gene expression pattern may potentially reflect antenatal development and can be a valuable predictor of adulthood conditions.
Methods:
To evaluate the mRNA expression profile of umbilical cord tissue, we used the GSE24818 microarray dataset from two groups of full-term neonates categorized by birth weight. The data were analyzed for differentially expressed genes (DEGs), gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), Human disease association, gene ontology (GO), and pathway analysis. Next, the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed and analyzed. After network and cluster analysis, the downstream functional analysis was conducted for hub and clustered genes.
Results:
A total of 4975 differentially expressed genes were identified as significant. The human disease analysis demonstrated an association of DEGs with different types of disorders such as cardiomyopathies. GO and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment of DEGs also suggested the contribution of gene expression alteration to cardiovascular disease. The GSEA results showed DEGs strongly correlated with inflammatory response, glycolysis, and adipogenesis. The three critical modules of the PPI network were involved in cardiovascular-related pathways.
Conclusions:
In the current study, a multi-step integrative analysis of microarray data of low-birth-weight neonates provides an insight into gene expression pattern that highlights the early onset of cardiomyopathy and the probability of cardiovascular, metabolic disorders, and other conditions later in life.