title: Network-based gene expression biomarkers for cold and heat patterns of rheumatoid arthritis in traditional chinese medicine.
abstract: IN TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE (TCM), PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS (RA) CAN BE CLASSIFIED INTO TWO MAIN PATTERNS: cold-pattern and heat-pattern. This paper identified the network-based gene expression biomarkers for both cold- and heat-patterns of RA. Gene expression profilings of CD4+ T cells from cold-pattern RA patients, heat-pattern RA patients, and healthy volunteers were obtained using microarray. The differentially expressed genes and related networks were explored using DAVID, GeneSpring software, and the protein-protein interactions (PPI) method. EIF4A2, CCNT1, and IL7R, which were related to the up-regulation of cell proliferation and the Jak-STAT cascade, were significant gene biomarkers of the TCM cold pattern of RA. PRKAA1, HSPA8, and LSM6, which were related to fatty acid metabolism and the I-κB kinase/NF-κB cascade, were significant biomarkers of the TCM heat-pattern of RA. The network-based gene expression biomarkers for the TCM cold- and heat-patterns may be helpful for the further stratification of RA patients when deciding on interventions or clinical trials.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Basic Research in Clinical Medicine, China Academy of Chinese Medical Science, No. 16, Nanxiaojie, Dongzhimennei, Beijing 100700, China.
authors.forename: Cheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Xuyan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Niu
authors.forename: Cheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: Gao
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Qinglin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zha
authors.forename: Hongtao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Miao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Aiping
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lu