Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are closely related autoimmune diseases with shared mechanisms that remain unclear. This study aims to identify shared molecular signatures and hub genes underlying the co-occurrence of AS and RA using clinical and transcriptomic dat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Boli Qin, Xiaopeng Qin, Jie Ma, Chenxing Zhou, Tianyou Chen, Jichong Zhu, Chengqian Huang, Shaofeng Wu, Rongqing He, Songze Wu, Sitan Feng, Jiarui Chen, Jiang Xue, Wendi Wei, Tengxiang Long, Quan Pan, Kechang He, Zhendong Qin, Tiejun Zhou, Jiayan Jiang, Xinli Zhan, Chong Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-07-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-07300-2
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849400036400562176
author Boli Qin
Xiaopeng Qin
Jie Ma
Chenxing Zhou
Tianyou Chen
Jichong Zhu
Chengqian Huang
Shaofeng Wu
Rongqing He
Songze Wu
Sitan Feng
Jiarui Chen
Jiang Xue
Wendi Wei
Tengxiang Long
Quan Pan
Kechang He
Zhendong Qin
Tiejun Zhou
Jiayan Jiang
Xinli Zhan
Chong Liu
author_facet Boli Qin
Xiaopeng Qin
Jie Ma
Chenxing Zhou
Tianyou Chen
Jichong Zhu
Chengqian Huang
Shaofeng Wu
Rongqing He
Songze Wu
Sitan Feng
Jiarui Chen
Jiang Xue
Wendi Wei
Tengxiang Long
Quan Pan
Kechang He
Zhendong Qin
Tiejun Zhou
Jiayan Jiang
Xinli Zhan
Chong Liu
author_sort Boli Qin
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are closely related autoimmune diseases with shared mechanisms that remain unclear. This study aims to identify shared molecular signatures and hub genes underlying the co-occurrence of AS and RA using clinical and transcriptomic data, focusing on immune dysregulation pathways. The CBC data of 23,289 patients were collected, and six machine learning algorithms were applied to develop disease prediction models for AS and RA. Using permutation feature importance and Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP) based on the optimal model, the top 10 features most influential for AS and RA prediction were identified, followed by selecting their intersections. Bioinformatics analysis was conducted to identify key immune cells associated with AS and RA and to evaluate the correlation between these immune cells and the hub gene. Clinical data, hematoxylin–eosin (H&E) staining, and immunohistochemical analysis were used to validate the findings. Neutrophils and lymphocytes emerged as key predictors in AS and RA models. Bioinformatics identified MYO1F as a hub gene, significantly upregulated in both diseases, with a strong correlation to neutrophil infiltration (p < 0.05). Clinical data, H&E staining of histological sections of interspinous ligaments from AS patients and synovial tissue from RA patients, and immunohistochemistry confirmed elevated neutrophil counts and MYO1F expression (p < 0.05), supporting their roles in immune dysregulation. This study is the first to identify MYO1F as a hub gene in AS and RA co-occurrence, highlighting neutrophil infiltration as a critical factor in their pathogenesis. Our integrative approach combining machine learning, transcriptomics, and clinical validation, provides novel insights into shared mechanisms, positioning MYO1F and neutrophils as potential diagnostic and therapeutic targets.
format Article
id doaj-art-0bc5eb84d1a84f3aab99f7421d1c809d
institution Kabale University
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-0bc5eb84d1a84f3aab99f7421d1c809d2025-08-20T03:38:12ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115111510.1038/s41598-025-07300-2Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritisBoli Qin0Xiaopeng Qin1Jie Ma2Chenxing Zhou3Tianyou Chen4Jichong Zhu5Chengqian Huang6Shaofeng Wu7Rongqing He8Songze Wu9Sitan Feng10Jiarui Chen11Jiang Xue12Wendi Wei13Tengxiang Long14Quan Pan15Kechang He16Zhendong Qin17Tiejun Zhou18Jiayan Jiang19Xinli Zhan20Chong Liu21The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityHIV/AIDS Clinical Treatment Center of Guangxi (Nanning), The Fourth People’s Hospital of NanningThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityHIV/AIDS Clinical Treatment Center of Guangxi (Nanning), The Fourth People’s Hospital of NanningHIV/AIDS Clinical Treatment Center of Guangxi (Nanning), The Fourth People’s Hospital of NanningHIV/AIDS Clinical Treatment Center of Guangxi (Nanning), The Fourth People’s Hospital of NanningHIV/AIDS Clinical Treatment Center of Guangxi (Nanning), The Fourth People’s Hospital of NanningXuzhou Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityThe First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical UniversityAbstract Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are closely related autoimmune diseases with shared mechanisms that remain unclear. This study aims to identify shared molecular signatures and hub genes underlying the co-occurrence of AS and RA using clinical and transcriptomic data, focusing on immune dysregulation pathways. The CBC data of 23,289 patients were collected, and six machine learning algorithms were applied to develop disease prediction models for AS and RA. Using permutation feature importance and Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP) based on the optimal model, the top 10 features most influential for AS and RA prediction were identified, followed by selecting their intersections. Bioinformatics analysis was conducted to identify key immune cells associated with AS and RA and to evaluate the correlation between these immune cells and the hub gene. Clinical data, hematoxylin–eosin (H&E) staining, and immunohistochemical analysis were used to validate the findings. Neutrophils and lymphocytes emerged as key predictors in AS and RA models. Bioinformatics identified MYO1F as a hub gene, significantly upregulated in both diseases, with a strong correlation to neutrophil infiltration (p < 0.05). Clinical data, H&E staining of histological sections of interspinous ligaments from AS patients and synovial tissue from RA patients, and immunohistochemistry confirmed elevated neutrophil counts and MYO1F expression (p < 0.05), supporting their roles in immune dysregulation. This study is the first to identify MYO1F as a hub gene in AS and RA co-occurrence, highlighting neutrophil infiltration as a critical factor in their pathogenesis. Our integrative approach combining machine learning, transcriptomics, and clinical validation, provides novel insights into shared mechanisms, positioning MYO1F and neutrophils as potential diagnostic and therapeutic targets.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-07300-2MYO1FNeutrophil infiltrationShared mechanismsTranscriptomics
spellingShingle Boli Qin
Xiaopeng Qin
Jie Ma
Chenxing Zhou
Tianyou Chen
Jichong Zhu
Chengqian Huang
Shaofeng Wu
Rongqing He
Songze Wu
Sitan Feng
Jiarui Chen
Jiang Xue
Wendi Wei
Tengxiang Long
Quan Pan
Kechang He
Zhendong Qin
Tiejun Zhou
Jiayan Jiang
Xinli Zhan
Chong Liu
Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis
Scientific Reports
MYO1F
Neutrophil infiltration
Shared mechanisms
Transcriptomics
title Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis
title_full Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis
title_fullStr Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis
title_full_unstemmed Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis
title_short Shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis
title_sort shared gene signatures and molecular mechanisms link ankylosing spondylitis and rheumatoid arthritis
topic MYO1F
Neutrophil infiltration
Shared mechanisms
Transcriptomics
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-07300-2
work_keys_str_mv AT boliqin sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT xiaopengqin sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT jiema sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT chenxingzhou sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT tianyouchen sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT jichongzhu sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT chengqianhuang sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT shaofengwu sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT rongqinghe sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT songzewu sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT sitanfeng sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT jiaruichen sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT jiangxue sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT wendiwei sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT tengxianglong sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT quanpan sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT kechanghe sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT zhendongqin sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT tiejunzhou sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT jiayanjiang sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT xinlizhan sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis
AT chongliu sharedgenesignaturesandmolecularmechanismslinkankylosingspondylitisandrheumatoidarthritis