• In silico analyses for potential key genes associated with colon cancer
  • Fatemeh Khara,1,* Anis Khalafiyan,2
    1. Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Iran
    2. Department of Genetics and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran


  • Introduction: colorectal cancer( CRC) is one of the most prevalent cancers in the world, With between one and two million new cases being diagnosed each year. It is also the fourth most common cause of cancer-related death. Effective methods to diagnose and treat cancer may result from comprehending hub genes involved in colorectal cancer (CC) metastasis. In this study, we aim to identify the colorectal cancer’s key genes and look into their underlying molecular mechanisms.
  • Methods: In the current study, two microarray dataset (GSE103512, GSE77167, GSE74604 ) were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database (GEO). The fold change (FC) values of individual gene levels were calculated; differentially expressed genes (DEGs) with |FC| > 1 and P-value < 0.05 were considered to be significant. The Venn diagram was carried out for the overlapped part via Funrich software.
  • Results: A total of 7 overlapped upregulated genes and 4 downregulated genes were identified. Analysis showed that up-regulated genes involve in the metabolism of lipids and lipoproteins, cholesterol biosynthesis I, mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition. Down-regulated genes mainly associate with alpha4 beta1 integrin signaling events, Integrin family cell surface interactions, beta1 integrin cell surface interactions and p53 pathway.
  • Conclusion: Our study suggests that HLA-DPA1, FCMR, ADAM28 , ANKRD22, ANXA3, DHCR7, CEP55, S100P and ANLN may be potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for CC.
  • Keywords: colon cancer, key genes, Microarray analysis