AUTHOR=Huang Tucheng , Wang Kangjie , Li Yuewei , Ye Yanchen , Chen Yangxin , Wang Jingfeng , Yao Chen 

TITLE=Construction of a Novel Ferroptosis-Related Gene Signature of Atherosclerosis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cell-and-developmental-biology/articles/10.3389/fcell.2021.800833

DOI=10.3389/fcell.2021.800833

ISSN=2296-634X

ABSTRACT=<p>Atheroclerosis refers to a chronic inflammatory disease featured by the accumulation of fibrofatty lesions in the intima of arteries. Cardiovasular events associated with atherosclerosis remain the major causes of mortality worldwide. Recent studies have indicated that ferroptosis, a novel programmed cell death, might participate in the process of atherosclerosis. However, the ferroptosis landscape is still not clear. In this study, 59 genes associated with ferroptosis were ultimately identified in atherosclerosis in the intima. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses were performed for functional annotation. Through the construction of protein–protein interaction (PPI) network, five hub genes (<italic>TP53</italic>, <italic>MAPK1</italic>, <italic>STAT3</italic>, <italic>HMOX1</italic>, and <italic>PTGS2</italic>) were then validated histologically. The competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network of hub genes was ultimately constructed to explore the regulatory mechanism between lncRNAs, miRNAs, and hub genes. The findings provide more insights into the ferroptosis landscape and, potentially, the therapeutic targets of atherosclerosis.</p>