Immune dysfunction mediated by the competitive endogenous RNA network in fetal side placental tissue of polycystic ovary syndrome
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a commonly occurring endocrine and metabolic disorder that impacts women in their reproductive years. Emerging evidence suggests that the maternal-fetal immune system is crucial for proper pregnancy. However, whether immune function is altered during pregnancy in PCOS women and the underlying molecular mechanisms is currently unexplored. Herein, the basic maternal immune system was investigated (n = 136 in the control group; n = 103 in the PCOS group), and whole-transcriptome sequencing was carried out to quantify the mRNAs, miRNAs, and lncRNAs expression levels in fetal side placental tissue of women with PCOS. GO, KEGG, and GSEA analysis were employed for functional enrichment analysis. The process of identifying hub genes was conducted utilizing the PPI network. CIBERSORT and Connectivity Map were deployed to determine immune cell infiltration and predict potential drugs, respectively. A network of mRNA-miRNA-lncRNA was constructed and then validated by qRT-PCR. Overall design: Whole-transcriptome sequencing was carried out to quantify the mRNAs, miRNAs, lncRNAs, and circRNAs expression levels in fetal side placental tissue of women with PCOS.