Analysis of Key Genes, Signaling Pathways, and Regulatory Networks Associated with Brain Aging based on Gene Transcriptome

School of Clinical Medical Sciencest, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, 646000, China

^* Corresponding author’s e-mail: ziyanzhou723@163.com

Abstract

The brain is a vital organ that governs human behavior, volition, and emotions, with brain cells serving as the fundamental structures for these activities. Research has proven that brain aging is a significant contributing factor to the decline in cognitive functions such as learning, memory, reasoning, and executive functions in older individuals. Furthermore, a series of biochemical changes resulting from cell aging are often reported as early indicators of pathological changes in neurodegenerative diseases. In an attempt to identify the key signaling pathways and core regulatory genes involved in the course of cell aging, this study deeply mined RNA-array data and RNA-seq data associated with brain aging. Firstly, differentially expressed genes highly expressed in a significant way in older individuals in comparison to younger individuals were identified, followed by enrichment analysis of signaling pathways to identify critical pathways. Subsequently, regulatory networks were analyzed on the differentially expressed genes, and finally, drug target prediction was performed for the core genes. The analysis revealed that four signaling pathways, i.e., antigen processing and presentation, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Bcell receptor signaling pathway and NF-kappa B signaling pathway, are closely associated with brain aging, and 20 core regulatory genes were identified, including RHOA, FYN, INSR, FOXA2, HOXA10, among others. These genes play a role in such processes as inducing cell apoptosis, regulating cell growth, and inducing inflammation. Currently, the research on brain aging and neurodegenerative diseases is not comprehensive, and there are still many puzzles yet to be solved. The findings of this study provide new research insights and directions for exploring new breakthroughs in research and understanding of brain aging.