Acute effects on the human peripheral blood transcriptome of decompression sickness secondary to scuba diving: Supplementary datasets

Decompression sickness (DCS) develops due to inert gas bubble formation in the circulation, leading to a wide range of potentially serious clinical manifestations. Its pathophysiology remains incompletely understood. In this study, we aim to explore changes in the human leukocyte transcriptome in divers with cutaneous DCS compared to closely matched unaffected controls after uneventful diving. Cases (n = 7) were divers developing the typical cutis marmorata rash after diving with a confirmed clinical diagnosis of DCS. Controls (n = 6) were healthy divers who surfaced from a ≥25 msw dive without decompression violation or evidence of DCS. Blood was sampled at two separate time points – within 8 hours of dive completion and 40-44 hours later. Transcriptome analysis by RNA-Sequencing followed by bioinformatic analysis was carried out to identify differentially expressed genes and relate their function to biological pathways. In DCS cases, we identified enrichment of transcripts involved in...