Identification and Validation of Telomere-Related Gene Signature in Intervertebral Disc Degeneration.

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Data were sourced from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) with datasets GSE245147 and GSE124272 used for initial identification and validation, respectively. The GSE245147 dataset comprised transcriptional profiles from nucleus pulposus cells of both degenerated and non-degenerated human nucleus pulposus (NP) tissues. Using the limma package, 198TRDEGs were identified by intersecting differentially expressed genes (DEGs) with telomere-related genes (TRGs) from the TelNet database. Functional enrichment analyses using the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) revealed that TRDEGs are significantly involved in cell division, chromosome segregation, and other mitotic processes. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks constructed using the Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes/Proteins (STRING) database and visualized with Cytoscape (Cytoscape Consortium, San Diego, CA, USA) identified key hub genes such as CDK1, CCNA2, and AURKB. Pearson correlation and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses highlighted five hub genes (ASPM, BUB1B, CDC20, KIF2C, TTK) with significant predictive value for IVDD. Additionally, mRNA-microRNA (miRNA) interaction analysis using NetworkAnalyst identified key miRNAs interacting with these hub genes. This study provides insights into the molecular mechanisms of IVDD and identifies potential targets for therapeutic intervention.", "claims": [{"id": "claim-method", "statement": "The DEGs in IVDD were identified using the R package limma version 3.60.2 (Bioconductor, Boston, MA, USA), with criteria of |logFC| > 1 and adjusted p-value < 0.05.", "kind": "methodological", "target": null, "evidence": [{"asset": "source:pmid:39553152", "locator": "sections[2] \"Materials and methods\" paragraph 6", "quote": "The DEGs in IVDD were identified using the R package limma version 3.60.2 (Bioconductor, Boston, MA, USA), with criteria of |logFC| > 1 and adjusted p-value < 0.05."}], "state": "complete"}, {"id": "claim-data-access", "statement": "The data used in this study are available from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) repository (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/) with accession number GSE245147 [13], which was used to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with telomere-associated genes. 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