The expression profiles of
circRNAs,
miRNAs, and mRNAs from patients with CRSwNP and control subjects were acquired from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. The
circRNA/
miRNA/
mRNA ceRNA network was constructed based on the predicted
circRNA-
miRNA interactions and
miRNA-
mRNA interactions. Hub-mRNAs were screened by protein-protein interaction network analysis and Cytoscape molecular complex detection. The expression of factors in tissue and in hsa_circ_0031594
siRNA transfection cells was verified by RT-qPCR and the association between them was revealed by Spearman correlation analysis. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed with the pROC R package.
Results: The differential expression of 5423
circRNAs, 415
miRNAs, and 3673 mRNAs was identified in CRSwNP subjects compared to control subjects. Among these, 9
circRNAs, 39
miRNAs, and 78 mRNAs were screened to construct a
ceRNA network. Ultimately, a subnetwork including
circRNA hsa_circ_0031594,
hsa-miR-1260b, hsa-miR-6507-5p, NCAPG2, RACGAP1, CHEK1 and PRC1 was screened out. RT-qPCR validated that the expression of hsa_circ_0031594, NCAPG2, PRC1 was significantly increased, and
hsa-miR-1260b and hsa-miR-6507-5p were expressed significantly less in patients with CRSwNP than in control subjects. In addition, the AUCs of hsa_circ_0031594,
hsa-miR-1260b, hsa-miR-6507-5p, NCAPG2, and PRC1 to discriminate CRSwNP patients were 0.995, 0.842, 0.862, 0.765, and 0.816. Spearman correlation showed that the expression of hsa_circ_0031594 was negatively correlated with
hsa-miR-1260b and hsa-miR-6507-5p, and positively correlated with NCAPG2 and PRC1. In human nasal epithelial cell (HNEpC) line, knocking down hsa_circ_0031594 could increase the expression of
hsa-miR-1260b and hsa-miR-6507-5p, and reduce the expression of NCAPG2 and PRC1.
Conclusion:
CeRNA networks including hsa_circ_0031594,
hsa-miR-1260b, and NCAPG2, and hsa_circ_0031594, hsa-miR-6507-5p, and PRC1 may be key regulators for CRSwNP occurrence, and may be potential targets for the pathogenesis and treatment development of CRSwNP.