Figure 1.

Co-expression network of miRNAs associated with the circulating levels of EMPs. (A) Representation of the miRNA co-expression network. The node color represents the Spearman correlation between the expression of the corresponding miRNA and PECAM+ EMP levels; red nodes correspond to miRNAs that are positively correlated with PECAM+ EMPs, and green nodes correspond to miRNAs that are negatively correlated with PECAM+ EMPs. The edge shape is related to the direction of the partial correlation; the continuous lines represent partial positive correlations, and dotted lines refer to partial negative correlation. (B) Biological implications of the miRNAs included in the co-expression network based on previous knowledge. The border color of the node represent miRNAs involved in cardiovascular diseases or in bicuspid aortic valve. The hexagon node shape corresponds to flow-sensitive miRNAs. The node color represents miRNA expression in endothelial or hematological cells. (C) Topological analysis of the miRNA co-expression network. miR-494 was identified as the master switch based on its role as the most important hub in the co-expression network. The color and the size of the node refer the topological importance of the miRNA within the network. Node positions are conserved between networks.