ANLN, COL8A1, MMP3, MMP14 and WNT5A, as potential diagnostic and therapeutic targets for early-stage colorectal cancer: evidence from integrated bioinformatics analysis

Abstract

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide. Intense efforts have been made to elucidate the pathogeny, but the molecular mechanisms of early-stage CRC are still not well understood. This study aims to identify the candidate genes in the carcinogenesis of early-stage CRC Microarray datasets GSE44076, GSE41328 and GSE9348 were obtained from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, and functional enrichment analyses were performed. The protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was constructed and the module analysis was performed by using STRING and Cytoscape. A total of 363 DEGs were identified, consisting of 48 downregulated genes and 315 upregulated genes. The enriched GO (Gene Ontology) and KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) pathways of the DEGs mainly include collage catabolic process, extracellular matrix organization, skeleton system development and collagen fibril organization. 28 hub genes were identified, and biological process analysis revealed that these genes were mainly enriched in cell division, cell cycle, and nuclear division. Survival analysis showed that ANLN, COL8A1, MMP3, MMP14 and WNT5A may be related to the poor overall survival rate of patients. DEGs and hub genes identified in this study contribute to our understanding of differential genes and biological processes in the development and progression of early-stage CRC, providing possible targets for the early diagnosis and treatment of CRC.