Identification of Potential Crosstalk Genes and Mechanisms Between Periodontitis and Diabetic Nephropathy through Bioinformatic Analysis

Background: Periodontitis (PD) and diabetic nephropathy (DN) are significant public health concerns globally and are closely related with each other. This study aimed to identify potential crosstalk genes, pathways, and mechanisms associated with the interaction between PD and DN. Methods Expression profiles of PD and DN were retrieved from the GEO database, and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened, followed by identification of co-expressed differential genes. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses were performed using R software. A protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was constructed via STRING website, and key crosstalk genes were selected using Cytoscape. Subsequent GO and KEGG analyses were conducted for the key genes, and a validation dataset was obtained from the GEO database for differential gene validation. The TRRUST website was employed to identify transcription factors (TFs) associated with the key crosstalk genes between PD and DN, followed by differential analysis of TFs. Results A total of 17 crosstalk genes were obtained. Among them, SAMSN1, BCL2A1, IL19, IL1B, RGS1, CXCL3, CCR1, CXCR4, CXCL1 and PTGS2 were identified as key crosstalk genes between PD and DN. Additionally, sixteen key TFs were discovered. Conclusion This bioinformatic analysis revealed potential crosstalk genes between PD and DN. The identified key genes participate in signaling pathways, including cytokine signaling and chemokine signaling transduction, which might collectively influence these two diseases. These findings may provide insights for future research.