In silico analysis of the potential role of SRY gene in Parkinson’s disease

Abstract

Objective: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the most common movement disorder and is caused by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. The first motor symptoms of PD begin to appear when more than 60% of dopaminergic neurons are already lost. Although the etiology of PD is not fully understood, PD is believed to result from the complex interactions between genetic and environmental factors. Previous studies demonstrated that men are at least 1.5 times more likely to develop PD than women. The current study aimed to investigate whether SRY, a chromosome gene, plays a role in the pathogenesis of PD using in silico methods. Materials and Methods: The mRNA expression of SRY in different human tissues was analyzed using the Human Protein Atlas (HPA). The interactions between SRY and PD-related genes were analyzed using the STRING and GeneMANIA databases. The JASPAR database was used to determine the putative binding sites of SRY in the promoter regions of some PD-related genes. Finally, the BioGRID and GeneMANIA databases were used to identify the key genes that interact with SRY. Results: In silico analyses revealed that there are SRY binding sites in the promoter regions of some PD-associated genes and that SRY can regulate androgen receptor (AR) signaling. Conclusion: These findings suggest that SRY may play a role in the pathogenesis of PD and may thus serve as a molecular target for developing new therapeutic strategies against PD.