Identification and bioinformatics analysis of overlapping differentially expressed genes in depression, papillary thyroid cancer and uterine fibroids

It is hypothesized that there may be common characteristics between the genetic regulatory networks of different diseases. To identify these potential similarities, analysis of overlapping differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in several diseases, which are believed to be associated in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was performed in the present study. The gene expression profiles associated with depression, papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and uterine fibroids (UF) were preliminarily analyzed using Gene Expression Omnibus 2R tools. Gene Ontology enrichment analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis and protein-protein interaction network analysis of the overlapping DEGs in depression, PTC and UF was performed. The results indicated that multiple genes, including activating transcription factor 3 and WSC domain containing 2 and the phosphoinositide 3 kinase/protein kinase b signaling pathway and its downstream effectors may be common factors associated with depression, PTC and/or UF. The neuroendocrine functions of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis and hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis were also identified as being mutually associated with depression, PTC and/or UF. However, due to the limitations of DNA microassays, it is recommended that future studies take epigenetics into consideration. Further transcriptomic, methylomic and metabolomic analyses of depression, PTC and UF are also required to identify and elucidate the key associated biomarkers. In conclusion, the results of the current study shed light on the potential genetic interconnections between depression, PTC and UF, which may be beneficial for understanding their underlying coregulatory mechanisms and contributing to the development of homeotherapy based on bioinformatics prediction.