Integrative bioinformatics analysis of biomarkers and pathways for exploring the mechanisms and molecular targets associated with pyroptosis in type 2 diabetes mellitus

INTRODUCTION: Research has shown that pyroptosis contributes greatly to the progression of diabetes and its complications. However, the exact relationship between this particular cell death process and the pathology of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) remains unclear. In this study, we used bioinformatic tools to identify the pyroptosis-related genes (PRGs) associated with T2DM and to analyze their roles in the disease pathology. METHODS: Two microarray datasets, GSE7014 and GSE25724, were obtained from the GEO database and assessed for differentially expressed genes (DEGs). The T2DM-associated DEGs that overlapped with differentially expressed PRGs were noted as T2DM-PRGs. Subsequently, 25 T2DM-PRGs were validated and subjected to functional enrichment analysis through Gene Ontology annotation analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis, and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). The diagnostic and predictive value of the T2DM-PRGs was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC). Additionally, a single-sample GSEA algorithm was applied to study immune infiltration in T2DM and assess immune infiltration levels. RESULTS: We identified 25 T2DM-PRGs that were significantly enriched in the nuclear factor-kappa B signaling and prostate cancer pathways. The top five differentially expressed prognostic T2DM-PRGs targeted by miRNAs were PTEN, BRD4, HSP90AB1, VIM, and PKN2. The top five differentially expressed T2DM-PRGs associated with transcription factors were HSP90AB1, VIM, PLCG1, SCAF11, and PTEN. The genes PLCG1, PTEN, TP63, CHI3L1, SDHB, DPP8, BCL2, SERPINB1, ACE2, DRD2, DDX58, and BTK showed excellent diagnostic performance. The immune infiltration analysis revealed notable differences in immune cells between T2DM and normal tissues in both datasets. These findings suggest that T2DM-PRGs play a crucial role in the development and progression of T2DM and could be used as potential diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets. DISCUSSION: Investigating the mechanisms and biomarkers associated with pyroptosis may offer valuable insights into the pathophysiology of T2DM and lead to novel therapeutic approaches to treat the disease.