Screening and identification of key chromatin regulator biomarkers for ankylosing spondylitis and drug prediction: evidence from bioinformatics analysis

Ankylosing spondylitis(AS) is one of the most common immune arthritic diseases in the world. Considerable efforts have been made to elucidate its pathogenesis, but the molecular mechanisms of ankylosing spondylitis are still not fully understood. To identify candidate genes in AS progression, the microarray dataset GSE25101 was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified and functionally enriched for analysis, and a protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was constructed and performed using STRING and cytoHubba Modular analysis was performed, and immune cell and immune function analysis, functional analysis and drug prediction were performed. The results showed that DEGs were mainly associated with histone modifications, chromatin organization, transcriptional coregulator activity, transcriptional co-activator activity, histone acetyltransferase complexes, and protein acetyltransferase complexes. Differences in expression between the CONTROL and TREAT groups in terms of immunity were analyzed to determine the effect on TNF-α secretion. Two therapeutic agents, AY 11-7082 and Myricetin were predicted by obtaining hub genes. In conclusion, the DEGs, hub genes and predicted drugs identified in this study contribute to our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the onset and progression of AS and provide candidate targets for the diagnosis and treatment of AS.