Identification of crucial genes and prediction of small molecules for multidrug resistance of Hodgkin's lymphomas.

BACKGROUND: Multidrug resistance of Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) often results in recurrence. Thus, we aimed to explore the underlying molecular mechanisms of multidrug resistance using bioinformatics strategies.

METHODS: The gene expression profile was obtained from GEO database. Then, the differentially expressed genes were screened out, and their functional annotations were carried out. Then, gene-signal interaction network was constructed and Connectivity Map (CMAP) analysis was performed.

RESULTS: A total of 1425 dysregulated genes were screened out, which were mainly enriched in biological items, such as small molecule metabolic, signal transduction, and cell apoptosis. Some survival-related pathways, such as MAPK pathways, apoptosis, and P53 pathway, and several hub genes, such as PRKCA, ACTN1, PIP5K1B, PRKACB, and JAK2, might play key roles in the development of multidrug resistance. Interestingly, felodipine was predicted to be a potential agent overcoming the multidrug resistance.

CONCLUSIONS: The present study offered new insights into the molecular mechanisms of multidrug resistance and identified a series of important hub genes and small agents that might be critical for treatment of multidrug-resistant HL.