Abstract
Objective: To identify potential novel biomarkers and characterize immune infiltration in atrial tissue of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) through bioinformatics analysis.
Methods: Three AF datasets (GSE31821, GSE41177, and GSE79768) from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were integrated to identify differentially expressed genes(DEGs) related to chromatin regulators(CRs). Functional and pathway enrichment analyses were undertaken using GO,DO,and KEGG.10 hub genes from the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of DEGs were utilized to predict possible drugs and miR-RNA.Furthermore,gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) method was used to analyse immune cells immune infiltration in AF and identifythe most signifcant potential biomarkers.Finally,Diagnostic model was constructed to predict the individual risk of AF.
Results: A total of 77 DEGs related to CRs were identifed in AF patients compared with control group.Six hub DEGs(RBBP4, KAT7,KANSL2, ACTB, TRRAP,and KAT2B) and fourimmune cell subpopulations (tumor-infiltration lymphocyte ,master cells, neutrophils, regulatory T cells) were identifed as the most signifcant potential regulators.Hsa-miR-142-3p,hsa-miR-639,hsa-miR-3681,and hsa-miR-4280 were selected as potential therapeutic targets at post-transcriptional level.Then,we predicted 4 potential small molecule drugs(STOCK1N-28457,diphenylpyraline,hesperetin,dorzolamide )
Conclusion: The DEGs related to CRs and immune cells identifed in our study may be critical in AF development and provide potential predictive markers and therapeutic targets for determining a treatment strategy for AF patients.