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NEW ENGLAND SOUTHERN Gene Expression Meta-Analysis Identifies Novel Cell Type Specific Pathways in Multiple Sclerosis

JSHS · 2023

Overview

Polytechnic Institute Principal Investigator: Jill Moore, Ph.D., University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, RNA Therapeutics Institute Over 2 million people suffer from multiple sclerosis (MS), a severe neurodegenerative disease with life- debilitating symptoms and an economic burden of over 85 billion dollars per year in the U.S. alone. Despite being one of the most common autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases, the biological causes behind MS are still unknown. Diagnosing and treating MS are imperative, but due to the absence of MS-specific biomarkers and therapeutic targets, tests and drugs are ineffective or nonspecific with poor patient outcomes. Studies that address this problem by profiling the gene expression landscape produce inconsistent results. T o address this issue, a robust meta-analysis of gene expression data was undertaken to provide an unbiased cell and tissue type analysis of differentially expressed genes and dysregulated pathways. This analysis elucidates cell-type specific effects and identifies a novel list of potential drug targets and biomarkers. Among these, post-translational modification, ribosomal, and mitochondrial mechanisms were found to be disrupted, implicating a new etiology that significantly expands the current knowledge of this disease. This study represents a major step in both understanding and outlining further targeted research into MS. The computational pipeline produced is capable of maximizing the biological accuracy of gene expression analyses and satisfies an unmet need in current research.

Competition history

  • JSHS 2023 Category not listed

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