Effects of dexamethasone and KLA on HepG2 gene expression

In this study, we exposed HepG2 cells to synthetic glucocorticoid dexamethasone (Dex), Kdo2-Lipid A (KLA), or both (DexKLA) for 24 hours and conducted RNA-seq analysis to investigate the impact of exposures on gene expression. We aimed to elucidate how Dex and KLA disrupt, misregulate, or interfere with inflammatory and metabolic pathways at the transcriptional level. By analyzing the differential gene expression profiles, we sought to identify affected specific pathways and genes, providing insight into the underlying molecular mechanisms. Cultured HepG2 cells were pretreated with growth media containing charcoal-stripped serum for 24 hours. Total RNA was extracted 24 hours after treatments followed by RNA-seq library preparation.