Identification of hub genes associated with pyroptosis in diabetic nephropathy patients using integrated bioinformatic analysis.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the role of pyroptosis in diabetic nephropathy (DN) and identify potential biomarkers for diagnosis. METHODS: We analyzed the GEO dataset GSE96804 to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to pyroptosis in DN. The CIBERSORT method was used to assess M1 macrophage infiltration in the samples. Using weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), we identified gene modules associated with M1 macrophages. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) method was then applied to screen for key genes. The intersection of key genes identified by LASSO and the gene modules obtained from WGCNA resulted in the identification of ten hub genes as potential biomarkers for DN. RESULTS: A total of 366 DEGs were identified, with 310 genes associated with pyroptosis. Increased M1 macrophage infiltration was observed in DN patients. Ten hub genes were identified as potential DN biomarkers ECM1, LRP2BP, ALKBH7, CDH10, DUSP1, HSPA1A, LPL, NFIL3, PDK4, and TMEM150C. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the importance of pyroptosis in DN pathophysiology and identifies 10 hub genes as potential biomarkers. These findings may contribute to improved diagnosis and treatment of DN.