Whole blood transcriptomics in cardiac surgery identifies a gene regulatory network connecting ischemia reperfusion with systemic inflammation.

BACKGROUND: Cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass (CS/CPB) is associated with increased risk for postoperative complications causing substantial morbidity and mortality. To identify the molecular mechanisms underlying CS/CPB-induced pathophysiology we employed an integrative systems biology approach using the whole blood transcriptome as the sentinel organ. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Total RNA was isolated and globin mRNA depleted from whole blood samples prospectively collected from 10 patients at time points prior (0), 2 and 24 hours following CS/CPB. Genome-wide transcriptional analysis revealed differential expression of 610 genes after CS/CPB (p