Exploration of the Common Gene Characteristics and Molecular Mechanism of Parkinson’s Disease and Crohn’s Disease from Transcriptome Data

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder, and the mechanism of its occurrence is still not fully elucidated. Accumulating evidence has suggested that the gut acts as a potential origin of PD pathogenesis. Recent studies have identified that inflammatory bowel disease acts as a risk factor for Parkinson’s disease, although the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. The aim of this study was to further explore the molecular mechanism between PD and Crohn’s disease (CD). The gene expression profiles of PD (GSE6613) and CD (GSE119600) were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and were identified as the common differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the two diseases. Next, analyses were performed, including functional enrichment analysis, a protein–protein interaction network, core genes identification, and clinical correlation analysis. As a result, 178 common DEGs (113 upregulated genes and 65 downregulated genes) were found between PD and CD. The functional analysis found that they were enriched in regulated exocytosis, immune response, and lipid binding. Twelve essential hub genes including BUB1B, BUB3, DLGAP5, AURKC, CBL, PCNA, RAF1, LYN, RPL39L, MRPL13, RSL24D1, and MRPS11 were identified from the PPI network by using cytoHubba. In addition, inflammatory and metabolic pathways were jointly involved in these two diseases. After verifying expression levels in an independent dataset (GSE99039), a correlation analysis with clinical features showed that LYN and RAF1 genes were associated with the severity of PD. In conclusion, our study revealed the common pathogenesis of PD and CD. These common pathways and hub genes may provide novel insights for mechanism research.