Analysis of the genes and functions regulated by LASP1 in hepatic cancer cells based on transcriptome sequencing

Objective To detect the changes of gene expression due to LASP1 in hepatic cancer cells, so as to provide biological evidence for further investigating the molecular mechanisms associated with the pathogenesis of hepatic cancer mediated by LASP1. Methods The eukaryotic expression plasmids of LASP1 were constructed, which were then transfected into HepG2 cells. The hepatic cancer cells overexpressing LASP1 and control cells were established. The gene expression profiles of the two groups were detected by transcriptome sequencing. The two groups were compared for differentially expressed genes (DEGs) through bioinformatics analysis. GO, KEGG pathway and WikiPathway enrichment analyses were used to explore the biological process and pathways related to LASP1-regulated DEGs. Based on the STRING database, the interaction network of proteins encoded by DEGs was established, and the potential key genes regulated by LASP1 were explored. Results Compared with the control cells, 410 types of DEGs were screened out in hepatic cancer cells overexpressing LASP1, where 308 types of DEGs were up-regulated and 102 types of DEGs down-regulated. The results of GO enrichment analysis showed that the DEGs were related to the biological processes of ion transmembrane transport and cation transport. The results of KEGG pathway analysis showed that the DEGs were mainly associated with chemical carcinogenesis. The results of WikiPathway analysis showed that the DEGs were related to histone modification. The proteins encoded by DEGs might form a complex protein interaction network, and HIST1H1B, HIST1H4B, NCAM1, and SLC17A7 were the potential key genes regulated by LASP1. Conclusions The current study reveals the genes regulated by LASP1 in hepatic cancer cells, and their involvement in the biological processes and pathways related to ion transmembrane transport and chemical carcinogenesis. These findings provide evidence for further investigation of the biological functions and molecular mechanisms mediated by LASP1 in hepatic cancer cells.