Identification and validation of shared gene signature of kidney renal clear cell carcinoma and COVID-19

Abstract

Background COVID-19 is a severe infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and previous studies have shown that patients with kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC) are more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection than the general population. Nevertheless, their co-pathogenesis remains incompletely elucidated. Methods We obtained shared genes between these two diseases based on public datasets, constructed a prognostic risk model consisting of hub genes, and validated the accuracy of the model using internal and external validation sets. We further analyzed the immune landscape of the prognostic risk model, investigated the biological functions of the hub genes, and detected their expression in renal cell carcinoma cells using qPCR. Finally, we searched the candidate drugs associated with hub gene-related targets from DSigDB and CellMiner databases. Results We obtained 156 shared genes between KIRC and COVID-19 and constructed a prognostic risk model consisting of four hub genes. Both shared genes and hub genes were highly enriched in immune-related functions and pathways. Hub genes were significantly overexpressed in COVID-19 and KIRC. ROC curves, nomograms, etc., showed the reliability and robustness of the risk model, which was validated in both internal and external datasets. Moreover, patients in the high-risk group showed a higher proportion of immune cells, higher expression of immune checkpoint genes, and more active immune-related functions. Finally, we identified promising drugs for COVID-19 and KIRC, such as etoposide, fulvestrant, and topotecan. Conclusion This study identified and validated four shared genes for KIRC and COVID-19. These genes are associated with immune functions and may serve as potential prognostic biomarkers for KIRC. The shared pathways and genes may provide new insights for further mechanistic research and treatment of comorbidities.