Identification of Significant Genes in HIV/TB via Bioinformatics Analysis.

OBJECTIVE

Tuberculosis (TB) is the most common cause of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)-related deaths worldwide. The purpose of this study was to identify genes that are significant for the mechanisms involved in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) co-infection.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

We selected 113 HIV/TB and 109 HIV/LTBI (latent TB infection) genes from GSE37250 and GSE69581 datasets. The Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) was used for Kyoto Encyclopedia of Gene and Genome (KEGG) pathway and gene ontology (GO) analyses. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of common differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were visualized using Cytoscape software with Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes (STRING).

RESULTS

A total of 83 DEGs were found to be common to both datasets. These included 64 up-regulated genes and 19 down-regulated genes. The PPI network was analyzed, and 12 up-regulated genes were identified. Re-analysis using DAVID found no significant signaling pathways enriched by these twelve genes (CAMP, CTSG, DEFA1, DEFA1B, DEFA3, DEFA4, ELANE, HP, HPSE, OLFM4, PGLYRP1, TCN1).

CONCLUSIONS

Twelve significantly up-regulated DEGs that may be potential therapeutic targets for HIV/TB were identified using a series of bioinformatics analytical methods.