Functional biological context for the NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity module. Genes within purple boxes are key drivers and genes in purple font are module genes highlighted in A . Dashed arrows indicate causal relationships inferred from the causal network. NKG7 encodes natural killer cell granule protein 7, which regulates granule exocytosis in lymphocytes [ 48 ]. PRF1 encodes perforins that function with granzymes and granulysins to kill target cells [ 47 ]. Killer cell lectin-like receipt D1 encoded by KLRD1 forms heterodimers with NKG2 and can stimulate or inhibit cytotoxicity depending on NKG2 isoform [ 58 , 59 ]. MBYL1 , MYB proto-oncogene like 1, is a transcription activator [ 53 ]. The module genes GZMB, GZMA and GNLY encode granzymes and granulysin that kill target cells upon release [ 47 , 49 ]
