Network Analysis of Severe Asthma in Female Patients to Find Possible Drug Targets

Severe asthma (SA) has been a challenging health issue worldwide. In this view, a complementary study of gene expression profiles could be helpful. Protein-protein interaction network analysis could help better understand the molecular changes and, ultimately, the underlying mechanisms of treatment approaches. The identification of the critical genes involved in severe asthma is the main aim of this study.

Data were retrieved from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and pre-evaluated via GEO2R to find the significantly differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Cytoscape software and its plugin were used to facilitate protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis and gene ontology enrichment.

A total of 30 significant DEGs were identified as the genes that differentiate severe asthma from control samples. PPI network analysis led to the identification of four hub-bottlenecks, including TP53, AKT1, ACTB, and EGFR, and two hubs (GAPDH and PTEN). DLG4 was highlighted as a bottleneck node. "Nitric-oxide synthase", "lymphocyte apoptotic process", "regulation of cyclin-dependent protein serine/threonine kinase activity", and "positive regulation of miRNA maturation" biological processes were linked to the central genes.

AKT1 and EGFR, and the related biological processes, can be considered as the possible drug targets for severe asthma.