Unknown,Transcriptomics,Genomics,Proteomics

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Peripheral blood RNA expression profiling in illicit methcathinone users reveals effect on immune system

ABSTRACT: Methcathinone (ephedrone) is relatively easily accessible for abuse. Its users develop an extrapyramidal syndrome and it is not known if this is caused by methcathinone itself, by side-ingredients (manganese), or both. In the present study we aimed to clarify molecular mechanisms underlying this condition. We used microarrays to analyze whole genome gene expression patterns of peripheral blood from 20 methcathinone users and 20 matched controls. Gene expression profile data were analyzed by Bayesian modelling and functional annotation. Of 28,869 genes on the microarrays, 326 showed statistically significant differential expression with FDR adjusted p-values below 0.05. Quantitative RT-PCR confirmed differential expression for the most of the genes selected for validation. Functional annotation and network analysis indicated activation of a gene network that included immunological disease, cellular movement and cardiovascular disease functions (enrichment score 42). As HIV and HCV infections were confounding factors, we performed additional stratification of patients. A similar functional activation of the “immunological disease” category was evident when we compared patients according to injection status (past versus current users, balanced for HIV and HCV infection). However, this difference was not large therefore the major effect was related to the HIV status of the patients. Mn-methcathinone abusers have blood RNA expression patterns that mostly reflect their HIV and HCV infections. However, despite the strong confounding effect from infection, some modest drug abuse effects on gene expression were detected. 40 samples, 20 healthy volunteers and 20 illicit methcathinone users

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

SUBMITTER: Sulev Koks

PROVIDER: E-GEOD-28686 | biostudies-arrayexpress |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-arrayexpress

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Project description:Background & Aims: Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is complicated by hepatic fibrosis. Hypothesizing that fibrogenic signals may originate in cells susceptible to HCV infection, gene expression of hepatocytes was analyzed from persons with chronic HCV at different stages of liver fibrosis. Methods: HCV-infected subjects with significant liver fibrosis (Ishak fibrosis M-bM-^IM-%3) were matched for age, race, and gender to subjects with minimal fibrosis (Ishak fibrosis 0-1). RNA from portal tracts and hepatic parenchyma was isolated from biopsies by laser capture and transcriptome profiling was performed using hybridization arrays. Results: Portal tracts from both groups were enriched for immune related genes when compared to hepatocytes but high fibrosis subjects showed a loss of this enrichment. Hepatocytes from persons with high fibrosis were depleted for genes involved in small molecule and drug metabolism, especially butyrylcholinesterase (BCHE), a gene involved in the metabolism of drugs of abuse. Differential expression of BCHE was validated in the same tissues using qPCR. Cross-sectional and longitudinal testing in an expanded cohort of HCV-infected individuals showed that serum BCHE activity decreased in advance of progression to fibrosis. Conclusion: Chronic HCV infection is associated with a loss of hepatocyte metabolic function, decreased enrichment of immune-related genes in portal tracts and downregulation of BCHE in hepatocytes. Our results indicate that BCHE may be involved in the progression of fibrosis during HCV infection among injection drug users and may serve as a useful marker for fibrosis progression. Liver tissues were chosen from five subjects with chronic HCV infection and Ishak fibrosis stage 3-5 who had sufficient tissue stored in OCT and no HIV infection. Tissues that were stored in TrizolM-BM-. or other lysis buffers were excluded to avoid homogenization of transcriptomes between cellular constituents. Five control tissues were selected from persons of the same race and gender with chronic HCV infection estimated to be of similar duration (by age matching) but whose baseline Ishak fibrosis score was 0-1. One high fibrosis case was later excluded because the subject was found to be HBsAg positive, leaving a total of nine subjects.

Project description:In the present study, we studied chronic HCV patients who responded to IFN-based therapy as evidenced by absence of HCV RNA at the end of treatment, and focused on two issues that have not received much attention. Firstly, we evaluated whether specific genes or gene expression patterns in blood were able to distinguish responder patients with a viral relapse from responder patients who remained virus-negative after cessation of treatment. We found that chronic HCV patients who were sustained responders and relapsers to IFN-based therapy showed comparable baseline clinical parameters and immune composition in blood. However, at baseline, the gene expression profiles of a set of 18 genes predicted treatment outcome with an accuracy of 94%. Secondly, we examined whether patients with successful therapy-induced clearance of HCV still exhibited gene expression patterns characteristic for HCV, or whether normalization of their transcriptome was observed. We observed that the relatively high expression of IFN-stimulated genes (ISG) in chronic HCV patients prior to therapy was reduced after successful IFN-based antiviral therapy (at 24 weeks follow-up). These ISG included CXCL10, OAS1, IFI6, DDX60, TRIM5 and STAT1. In addition, 1428 differentially expressed non-ISG genes were identified in paired pre- and post-treatment samples from sustained responders, which included genes involved in TGF-β signaling, apoptosis, autophagy, and nucleic acid and protein metabolism. Interestingly, 1424 genes were identified with altered expression in responder patients after viral eradication in comparison to normal expression levels in healthy individuals. Additionally, aberrant expression of a subset of these genes, including IL-32, IL-16, CCND3 and RASSF1, was also observed at baseline. Our findings indicate that successful antiviral therapy of chronic HCV patients does not lead to normalization of their blood transcriptional signature. The altered transcriptional activity may reflect HCV-induced liver damage in previously infected individuals. A genome-wide gene expression analysis was performed on a blood cohort of 59 chronic HCV patients and 20 healthy controls. The expression profiles of patients who responded to IFN-based therapy, who developed a viral relapse were compared respectively to the profiles of healthy controls. Pre- and post-treatment expression profiles of same responders were compared as well.

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Peripheral blood RNA expression profiling in illicit methcathinone users reveals effect on immune system

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