Integrated analyses delineate distinctive immunological pathways and diagnostic signatures for Behcet's disease by leveraging gene microarray data

Abstract

Behcet's disease (BD) is a chronic inflammatory vasculitis and clinically heterogeneous disorder caused by immunocyte aberrations. Comprehensive research on gene expression patterns in BD illuminating its aetiology is lacking. E-MTAB-2713 downloaded from ArrayExpress was analysed to screen differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using limma. Random forest (RF) and neural network (NN) classification models composed of gene signatures were established using the E-MTAB-2713 training set and subsequently verified using GSE17114. Single sample gene set enrichment analysis was used to assess immunocyte infiltration. After identifying DEGs in E-MTAB-2713, pathogen-triggered, lymphocyte-mediated and angiogenesis- and glycosylation-related inflammatory pathways were discovered to be predominant in BD episodes. Gene signatures from the RF and NN diagnostic models, together with genes enriched in angiogenesis and glycosylation pathways, well discriminated the clinical subtypes of BD manifesting as mucocutaneous, ocular and large vein thrombosis involvement in GSE17114. Moreover, a distinctive immunocyte profile revealed T, NK and dendritic cell activation in BD compared to the findings in healthy controls. Our findings suggested that EPHX1, PKP2, EIF4B and HORMAD1 expression in CD14+ monocytes and CSTF3 and TCEANC2 expression in CD16+ neutrophils could serve as combined gene signatures for BD phenotype differentiation. Pathway genes comprising ATP2B4, MYOF and NRP1 for angiogenesis and GXYLT1, ENG, CD69, GAA, SIGLEC7, SIGLEC9 and SIGLEC16 for glycosylation also might be applicable diagnostic markers for subtype identification.

Keywords: Behcet’s disease; Diagnosis; Gene signatures; Immune cell infiltration; Immunological pathways.