Platelet RNA-seq Reveals Profile of Caffeic Acid Affecting Hemostasis in Mouse

Background Caffeic acid (CA) is a naturally occurring phenolic compound with diverse pharmacological properties. CA plays a crucial role in hemostasis by increasing platelet count. However, the mechanism by which CA regulates platelet to promote hemostasis remains unclear. Objectives and Methods Here we identified the potential target pathways and genes by which CA regulates platelet to promote hemostasis by performing ribonucleic acid sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis of mouse platelet pools in both the CA gavaged group and phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) gavaged group. Results The 12,934 expressed transcripts had been annotated after platelet RNA-seq. Compared with the PBS group, the 987 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, of which 466 were down-regulated and 521 were up-regulated in CA group. Gene ontology (GO), Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) and Reactome gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) demonstrated that up-regulated DEGs were enriched in the pathway of hemostasis, platelet activation, signaling, aggregation and degranulation. Moreover, KEGG and Reactome GSEA revealed that 5 of the 25 co-significantly up-regulated DEGs were essential in CA-mediated platelet regulation to promote hemostasis. Conclusions Our findings of platelet RNA-seq analysis demonstrate that CA regulates the gene expression of hemostasis and platelet activation related pathways to increase platelet count and promote hemostasis. It will also provide reference molecular resources for future research on the function and mechanism by which CA regulates platelet to promote hemostasis.