Differential expression of MUC1 gene mediated by Fusobacterium nucleatum in colorectal cancer cells

Abstract

Objective To investigate the regulatory effect of Fusobacterium nucleatum (F.nucleatum) on differential expression genes (DEGs) in colorectal cancer (CRC) by bioinformatics analysis, and to identify the expression of key genes in F.nucleatum infected CRC cells. Methods The high-throughput sequencing data of DEGs in CRC regulated by F.nucleatum were downloaded and screened from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, then Gene Ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis were performed on the datasets. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of DEGs were subsequently constructed with Cytoscape software. Finally, Western blotting and RT-qPCR were employed to verity the expression of hub gene MUC1 at protein and mRNA levels in the cell model, respectively. Results A total of 118 DEGs were screened out, of which 20 were up-regulated and 98 down-regulated. GO analysis showed that DEGs were noticeably enriched in cellular component (CC) such as plasma membrane and integral component of membrane, and KEGG analysis found that DEGs were significantly enriched in PI3K-Akt, MAPK, Rap1 and JAK-STAT signaling pathways (P < 0.05). In the PPI network, the hub gene MUC1 presented a high centrality score. Western blotting and RT-qPCR indicated that the infection of F.nucleatum was significantly correlated with the differential expression of MUC1. Conclusion The mechanism of CRC induced by F.nucleatum infection may be related to the overexpression of MUC1, according to the screening and verification of hub genes.

Keywords

• colorectal cancer
• fusobacterium nucleatum
• muc1
• differential expression genes