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Mucus plugs-associated gene expression identifies pathophysiology shared with chronic bronchitis

GSE302096 Homo sapiens (human) RNA-seq (gene expression) 48 samples Submitted 2026/02/03 Platform GPL30173Platform GPL21290
At a glance

RNA-seq (gene expression) · human · 48 samples

What it is
RNA-seq (gene expression)Gene activity measured by sequencing. The summary does not mention single-cell work, so this is most likely bulk: one average per sample, the usual starting point for comparing groups.
Organism
Homo sapiens (human)
Samples
48 samples: 48 samples, each with a distinct title — no replicated groupsGroups are read from the sample names, not from the paper. Check the list below.
Data you can get
A processed table (series matrix) and supplementary files from NCBI; the raw sequencing reads from ENA. Which of these hold counts depends on the study, so check the file list.
Paper
Mucus plugs-associated gene expression identifies pathophysiology shared with chronic bronchitisAmerican journal of respiratory and critical care medicine · 2026
Summary (written by the submitters)
Rationale: Mucus plug formation and chronic bronchitis are manifestations of mucus pathology in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Identifying gene expression changes related to mucus pathology could provide insight into its pathogenesis. Objectives: To investigate gene expression changes in individuals with mucus plugs, identify related biological pathways, and assess whether mucus plug-related gene expression associates with clinical features of other mucus pathologies.
Read the full summary ↓
Methods: We studied 290 participants from the Detection of Early Lung Cancer Among Military Personnel 2 study with mainstem bronchial brush bulk RNA-sequencing data (n = 204 discovery, n = 86 validation). We scored mucus plugging based on the number of lung segments with mucus plugs identified on chest computed tomography scans and used correlative analysis to identify differentially expressed genes and examine their association with chronic bronchitis symptoms. Results: 76 participants (37%) in the discovery set had mucus plugs. Differentially expressed genes were broadly epithelial- or immune-related. Epithelial-related genes show decreased expression of genes involved in cilia maintenance and microtubule function and increased expression of genes related to mucus production and secretion. Expression patterns of epithelial-related genes are associated with chronic bronchitis symptoms. Immune-related genes are enriched for innate and adaptive pathways. Expression of immune genes varies by lung function and was more weakly associated with mucus plugs than that of epithelial-related genes. Findings were replicated in an independent validation set. Conclusion: Several distinct gene expression patterns are linked to the presence of mucus plugs, highlighting biological pathways involved in mucus pathophysiology. Variability in gene expression suggests a spectrum of mucus pathophysiology contributes to mucus plugs and chronic bronchitis symptoms.
Published in
Mucus plugs-associated gene expression identifies pathophysiology shared with chronic bronchitis
Souery WN, Billatos E, Elalami R et al. · American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine 2026 · PMID 41072469 · doi:10.1164/rccm.202501-0262OC
This dataset
Open GSE302096 in finder → Find more human RNA-seq datasets →
Download · which file do I need?

Direct links to NCBI and ENA, no account and no request form. Pick by what you want to do: take the small processed table to look, the supplementary files to re-analyse, or the original raw data to start over.

1 · Just have a look

Processed table

The series matrix: one table of values per sample as the submitters processed it. The smallest download, and it opens in Excel or R. Start here to see what the data look like.

Series matrix ↓
2 · Re-analyse it

Supplementary files

The count tables and other files the authors uploaded. Take only the samples you need, or the whole study as GSE302096_RAW.tar (it can run to tens of gigabytes).

All supplementary files ↗ Whole study · RAW.tar ↓
3 · Start from the raw reads

Raw sequencing reads

The original FASTQ files, straight from the sequencer, held at ENA. Large, and you align them yourself, so only choose this if you need to re-process the study from scratch.

Raw reads on ENA ↗

What the files usually look like: For RNA-seq the counts are usually a table among the supplementary files (look for 'counts', 'expression', 'FPKM' or 'TPM' in the file name). The series matrix of a sequencing study is sometimes nearly empty.

Also filed as BioProject PRJNA1288514. Searching any of these in the dataset finder brings you back here.

NCBI GEO page ↗ Paper (PMID 41072469) ↗
Study design
48 samples, each with a distinct title — no replicated groups

Any grouping that defines a comparison lives in the sample characteristics, which GEO records separately from the titles.

How we read this: Read from 48 sample titles: 48 distinct titles with little repetition. These groups are guessed from the sample names, not taken from the paper, so check them against the sample list below before relying on them.

Samples in this study

+ 8 more — browse all 48 samples with per-sample file links →

Datasets on a similar topic

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