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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Genet.
Sec. Genetics of Common and Rare Diseases
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1483098

Longitudinal Transcriptome Analysis Reveals Distinct Gene Expression Patterns in Traditional Chinese Medicine Syndromes of Upper Respiratory Tract Infections

Provisionally accepted
Xiaohui Zou Xiaohui Zou 1*Hao Zou Hao Zou 2Changrui Huang Changrui Huang 2Qinqi Feng Qinqi Feng 2Bang Yu Bang Yu 2Jian Liu Jian Liu 1Xinyang Shu Xinyang Shu 1Xiaolu Nie Xiaolu Nie 3Zhang Hongchun Zhang Hongchun 1
  • 1 China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing, China
  • 2 Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
  • 3 Beijing Children’s Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Wind-cold (WC) and Wind-heat (WH) are common syndromes of upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), presenting different clinical features, but the transcriptomic changes associated with these syndromes remained unclear.Materials and Methods: Patients with WC and WH syndromes were recruited from outpatient unit, pharyngeal swabs were collected for pathogen detection. Peripheral blood samples were obtained on day 1 and day 6, with healthy volunteers as controls. Transcriptome sequencing was performed to identify differentially expressed genes and pathways associated with the two syndromes. Marker genes for each syndrome were identified, and a machine learning classifier was developed.Results: A total of 124 samples from 34 WC, 30 WH patients, and 16 health controls were included in this study. No significant differences in etiological spectrum were observed between the syndromes. Both syndromes showed distinct gene expression profiles compared to health control.Gene enrichment analysis indicated that TGF-β and Wnt/β -catenin pathways were downregulated in the WH. The oxidative phosphorylation pathways were downregulated in WC cohort compared to the WH cohort. As the URTIs improved from day 1 to day 6, oxidative phosphorylation pathway activity returned to normal levels. The marker genes for WC and WH syndromes were identified and a random forest classifier was built, achieving an accuracy of 0.88.WC and WH syndromes demonstrated distinct gene expression profiles, supporting more precise TCM diagnosis. WC syndrome is marked by mitochondrial dysfunction, while WH syndrome is characterized by downregulated TGF-β and Wnt/β-catenin pathways.

    Keywords: Upper respiratory tract infections, Traditional Chinese Medicine, wind-cold syndrome, Wind-heat syndrome, transcriptome analysis

    Received: 19 Aug 2024; Accepted: 14 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zou, Zou, Huang, Feng, Yu, Liu, Shu, Nie and Hongchun. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Xiaohui Zou, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing, China

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