Abstract
Objective: Abnormal blood flow can influence gene expression of endothelial cells. Atherosclerotic plaques are more likely to form at the arterial bifurcation or the downstream of stenosis with low or oscillatory wall shear stress (WSS). However, the mechanism remains elusive. This study aims to explore the hub genes and the transcription factors (TF) regulating endothelial gene expression under oscillatory flow through bioinformatics. Methods: Microarray expression profile (GSE16706) was obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database to explore differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) under oscillatory flow (time-average 1 dyne/cm2; range: -11 - +11 dynes/cm2; 1 Hz). Enrichment analysis was conducted to infer the function of DEGs. Protein-protein interaction network was also plotted to further explore hub genes. TF for hub genes were predicted through NetworkAnalyst. Results: 303 DEGs, with 219 up-regulated genes and 84 down-regulated genes, were identified by comparing gene expression of HUVECs under oscillatory flow or static condition. 4 hub genes (CCNA2, CDC45, BUB1B, KIF20A) related to cell cycle were verified in GSE83476. ELF1 which could regulate all these 4 hub genes was selected as a key TF. Conclusion: We found 4 hub genes and 1 TF associated with oscillatory flow treated HUVECs, which might also be involved in oscillatory flow induced atherosclerosis.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
