Proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) is the advanced stage of diabetic retinopathy (DR), coupling with irregular neovascularization, and is the leading cause of blindness in working-age people; but the molecular mechanism of vascular differentiation in PDR remains poorly characterized. In our study, we obtained the transcriptome profile of neovascular proliferative membrane specimens from patients with PDR via high-throughput sequencing and advanced bioinformatics. Marker genes of neovascularization were validated and distinct gene expression patterns were formed of PDR compared with normal retina. We also discovered gene sets that were co-expressed with vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), including transcription factors (TFs) that dysregulate VEGFA. In particular, ETS transcription factors family could negatively regulate VEGFA. We also detected a set of genes related to PDR was dramatically changed from pre-mRNA to mature mRNA. In summary, our study firstly presented the profile of neovascular proliferative membrane and identified new marker genes and key regulators of VEGFA, which could contribute the molecular therapy of PDR in the future. SOURCE: Dong Chen ABLife, Inc.

Pluto Bioinformatics

GSE102485: Transcriptome Profile and Marker Gene Discovery from Patients with Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy by RNA-seq