Integrated analysis of the miRNA-mRNA network associated with LMP1 gene in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Abstract

Epstein-Barr virus oncogenic latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1) has been known to play important roles in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). LMP1 gene also induced a variety of microRNAs (miRNAs) which bear pivotal roles in regulation of mRNAs expression. However, little was known about the global change of mRNAs and miRNAs induced by LMP1 gene in NPC. In our study, one NPC tissue microarray profile and two LMP1-associated microarray expression profiles data were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. A protein-protein interaction network was constructed by using bioinformatics platform Gene-Cloud of Biotechnology Information (GCBI). 78 differentially expressed miRNAs and 3322 differentially expressed genes were identified in order to generate a macroscopic network between miRNAs and mRNAs associated with LMP1 gene. In addition, two significant models were generated to illustrate the expression tendency. Our study provided a way to reveal the interaction between miRNAs and mRNAs in LMP1 axis, bringing insights into the pathogenesis of NPC.