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Updated: Nov 3, 2025

Measurement of Pulse Propagation Velocity, Distensibility and Strain in an Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Mouse Model
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Weighted Gene Co-Expression Network Analysis Reveals Key Genes and Potential Drugs in Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

Ke-Jia Kan1,2, Feng Guo1,2, Lei Zhu1,3

  • 1Department of Surgery, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, 68167 Mannheim, Germany.

Biomedicines
|June 2, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Researchers identified key genes and potential drug targets for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), a dangerous aortic disease. This study offers new insights into AAA progression and potential pharmaceutical therapies.

Area of Science:

  • Genomics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cardiovascular Research

Background:

  • Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a significant cause of mortality, characterized by gradual expansion and potential rupture.
  • The molecular mechanisms driving AAA progression and effective pharmaceutical treatments remain largely unidentified.
  • Understanding AAA pathogenesis is crucial for developing targeted therapies to prevent rupture.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify key molecular mechanisms and hub genes associated with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) progression.
  • To validate identified genes across multiple datasets, including human and mouse samples.
  • To predict potential drug candidates for preventing AAA progression based on identified key genes.

Main Methods:

  • Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) was applied to the GSE17901 dataset to identify key modules and hub genes.
  • Gene expression data from mouse (GSE12591) and human (GSE7084, GSE47472, GSE57691) datasets were used for validation.
  • The Drug-Gene Interaction database was utilized to predict potential drug candidates targeting the identified key genes.

Main Results:

  • Key modules associated with AAA progression were identified, enriched in mitotic cell cycle, GTPase activity, and metabolic processes.
  • Seven crucial genes (CCR5, ADCY5, ADCY3, ACACB, LPIN1, ACSL1, UCP3) were identified as significantly related to AAA progression.
  • Thirty-five potential drug candidates targeting these key genes were predicted for their therapeutic potential in preventing AAA.

Conclusions:

  • This study successfully identified key genes and molecular pathways involved in abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) development.
  • The identified genes and predicted drug candidates offer promising avenues for developing novel pharmaceutical strategies against AAA.
  • Further research into these targets could lead to effective treatments for preventing AAA expansion and rupture.
Keywords:
abdominal aortic aneurysmdrug–gene predictionfunctional enrichmenthub genekey moduleweighted gene co-expression network

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