Mining kidney toxicogenomic data by using gene co-expression modules

Background Acute kidney injury (AKI) caused by drug and toxicant ingestion is a serious clinical condition associated with high mortality rates. We currently lack detailed knowledge of the underlying molecular mechanisms and biological networks associated with AKI. In this study, we carried out gene co-expression analyses using DrugMatrix—a large toxicogenomics database with gene expression data from rats exposed to diverse chemicals—and identified gene modules associated with kidney injury to probe the molecular-level details of this disease.