Bulk RNA Sequencing Reveals Signature Differences in Key Cell Signaling Pathways Between Porcine Venous and Arterial...

Area of Science:

• Vascular Biology
• Genomics
• Cellular Signaling

Background:

• Significant differences exist in gene expression and signaling pathways between porcine arterial smooth muscle cells (ApSMCs) and venous smooth muscle cells (VpSMCs).
• Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying these differences is crucial for addressing vascular diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To perform a genome-wide comparison of VpSMCs and ApSMCs to identify key differences in gene expression.
• To elucidate the distinct molecular mechanisms governing cellular functions in arterial versus venous smooth muscle cells.

Main Methods:

• Bulk RNA sequencing was employed for genome-wide gene expression profiling of ApSMCs and VpSMCs.
• Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and heatmaps visualized sample separation.
• Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) and Overrepresentation Analysis (ORA) were used for functional pathway analysis against KEGG, GO, and WikiPathways databases.

Main Results:

• A clear separation between ApSMC and VpSMC samples was observed via PCA.
• 466 genes were highly expressed in ApSMCs, and 358 genes in VpSMCs (≥2-fold change, FDR ≤ 0.05).
• Enriched pathways predominantly relate to cell cycle, cell structure, and cell differentiation, with distinct gene sets regulating these pathways in ApSMCs versus VpSMCs (e.g., TP53 in ApSMCs, CDK1 in VpSMCs).

Conclusions:

• Porcine arterial and venous smooth muscle cells exhibit unique gene expression profiles.
• Different gene sets are employed to regulate conserved signaling pathways in ApSMCs and VpSMCs.
• These findings provide a foundation for developing cell-specific therapeutic strategies for arterial and venous vascular diseases.