Single-cell RNA sequencing and transcriptomic analysis reveal key genes and regulatory mechanisms in sepsis

The pathogenesis of sepsis, with a high mortality rate and often poor prognosis, has not been fully elucidated. Therefore, an in-depth study on the pathogenesis of sepsis at the molecular level is essential to identify key sepsis-related genes. The aim of this study was to explore the key genes and potential molecular mechanisms of sepsis using a bioinformatics approach. In addition, key genes with miRNA network correlation analysis and immune infiltration correlation analysis were investigated. The scRNA dataset (GSE167363) and RNA-seq dataset (GSE65682, GSE134347) from GEO database were used for screening out differentially expressed genes using single-cell sequencing and transcriptome sequencing. The analysis of immune infiltration was evaluated by the CIBERSORT method. Key genes and possible mechanisms were identified by WGCNA analysis, GSVA analysis, GSEA enrichment analysis and regulatory network analysis, and miRNA networks associated with key genes were constructed. Nine key genes associated with the development of sepsis, namely IL7R, CD3D, IL32, GPR183, HLA-DPB1, CD81, PEBP1, NCL, and ETS1 were screened, and the specific signaling mechanisms associated with the key genes causing sepsis were predicted. Immune profiling showed immune heterogeneity between control and sepsis samples. A regulatory network of 82 miRNAs, 266 pairs of mRNA-miRNA relationship pairs was also constructed. These nine key genes have the potential to become biomarkers for the diagnosis of sepsis and provide new targets and research directions for the treatment of sepsis.