scholarly journals Single-cell RNA sequencing of Plasmodium vivax sporozoites reveals stage- and species-specific transcriptomic signatures

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony A Ruberto ◽  
Caitlin Bourke ◽  
Amélie Vantaux ◽  
Steven P Maher ◽  
Aaron Jex ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
Salivary Glands ◽  
Plasmodium Vivax ◽  
Translational Regulation ◽  
Developmental Trajectory ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Developmental States ◽  
Usage Patterns ◽  
Gene Usage ◽  
Species Specific

Plasmodium vivax sporozoites reside in the salivary glands of a mosquito before infecting a human host. Previous transcriptome-wide studies in populations of these forms were limited in their ability to elucidate cell-to-cell variation, thereby masking cellular states potentially important in understanding transmission outcomes. In this study, we performed transcription profiling on 9,947 P. vivax sporozoites to assess the extent to which they differ at single-cell resolution. We show that sporozoites residing in the mosquito's salivary glands exist in distinct developmental states, as defined by their transcriptomic signatures. Additionally, relative to P. falciparum, P. vivax displays overlapping and unique gene usage patterns, highlighting conserved and species-specific gene programs. Notably, distinguishing P. vivax from P. falciparum were a subset of P. vivax sporozoites expressing genes associated with translational regulation and repression. Finally, our comparison of single-cell transcriptomic data from P. vivax sporozoite and erythrocytic forms reveals gene usage patterns unique to sporozoites. In defining the transcriptomic signatures of individual P. vivax sporozoites, our work provides new insights into the factors driving their developmental trajectory and lays the groundwork for a more comprehensive P. vivax cell atlas.

scholarly journals Single-cell transcription analysis of Plasmodium vivax blood-stage parasites identifies stage- and species-specific profiles of expression

PLoS Biology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. e3000711 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana M. Sà ◽  
Matthew V. Cannon ◽  
Ramoncito L. Caleon ◽  
Thomas E. Wellems ◽  
David Serre
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
Plasmodium Vivax ◽  
Blood Stage ◽  
Transcription Analysis ◽  
Species Specific

scholarly journals Development of double-positive thymocytes at single-cell resolution

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Young Li ◽  
Kun Li ◽  
Lianbang Zhu ◽  
Bin Li ◽  
Dandan Zong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Cycle ◽  
Flow Cytometry ◽  
T Cells ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Immunofluorescent Staining ◽  
Cycle Phase ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Double Positive ◽  
Species Specific

Abstract Background T cells generated from thymopoiesis are essential for the immune system, and recent single-cell studies have contributed to our understanding of the development of thymocytes at the genetic and epigenetic levels. However, the development of double-positive (DP) T cells, which comprise the majority of thymocytes, has not been well investigated. Methods We applied single-cell sequencing to mouse thymocytes and analyzed the transcriptome data using Seurat. By applying unsupervised clustering, we defined thymocyte subtypes and validated DP cell subtypes by flow cytometry. We classified the cell cycle phases of each cell according to expression of cell cycle phase-specific genes. For immune synapse detection, we used immunofluorescent staining and ImageStream-based flow cytometry. We studied and integrated human thymocyte data to verify the conservation of our findings and also performed cross-species comparisons to examine species-specific gene regulation. Results We classified blast, rearrangement, and selection subtypes of DP thymocytes and used the surface markers CD2 and Ly6d to identify these subtypes by flow cytometry. Based on this new classification, we found that the proliferation of blast DP cells is quite different from that of double-positive cells and other cell types, which tend to exit the cell cycle after a single round. At the DP cell selection stage, we observed that CD8-associated immune synapses formed between thymocytes, indicating that CD8sp selection occurred among thymocytes themselves. Moreover, cross-species comparison revealed species-specific transcription factors (TFs) that contribute to the transcriptional differences of thymocytes from humans and mice. Conclusions Our study classified DP thymocyte subtypes of different developmental stages and provided new insight into the development of DP thymocytes at single-cell resolution, furthering our knowledge of the fundamental immunological process of thymopoiesis.

scholarly journals A single-cell atlas of Plasmodium falciparum transmission through the mosquito

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eliana Real ◽  
Virginia M. Howick ◽  
Farah Dahalan ◽  
Kathrin Witmer ◽  
Juliana Cudini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Complex Life Cycle ◽  
Transmission Cycle ◽  
Host Tropism ◽  
Specific Host ◽  
Gene Usage ◽  
Species Specific

AbstractMalaria parasites have a complex life cycle featuring diverse developmental strategies, each uniquely adapted to navigate specific host environments. Here we use single-cell transcriptomics to illuminate gene usage across the transmission cycle of the most virulent agent of human malaria – Plasmodium falciparum. We reveal developmental trajectories associated with the colonisation of the mosquito midgut and salivary glands and elucidate the transcriptional signatures of each transmissible stage. Additionally, we identify both conserved and nonconserved gene usage between human and rodent parasites, which point to both essential mechanisms in malaria transmission and species-specific adaptations potentially linked to host tropism. Together, the data presented here, which are made freely available via an interactive website, establish the most complete atlas of the P. falciparum transcriptional journey to date.One sentence summarySingle-cell transcriptomics of P. falciparum transmission stages highlights developmental trajectories and gene usage.

scholarly journals PDTM-32. RESOLVING MEDULLOBLASTOMA CELLULAR ARCHITECTURE BY SINGLE-CELL GENOMICS

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (Supplement_6) ◽  
pp. vi194-vi194
Author(s):  
Laure Bihannic ◽  
Volker Hovestadt ◽  
Kyle Smith ◽  
Mariella Filbin ◽  
McKenzie Shaw ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
Developmental Trajectory ◽  
Cerebellar Tumor ◽  
Granule Neurons ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Molecular Subgroups ◽  
Developmental States ◽  
Group 4 ◽  
Cells Of Origin ◽  
Group 3

Abstract Medulloblastoma is a malignant childhood cerebellar tumor comprised of distinct molecular subgroups. Whereas genomic characteristics of these subgroups are well defined, the extent to which cellular diversity underlies their divergent biology and clinical behaviour remains largely unexplored. We used single-cell transcriptomics to investigate intra- and inter-tumoral heterogeneity in twenty-five medulloblastomas spanning all molecular subgroups. WNT, SHH, and Group 3 tumors comprised subgroup-specific undifferentiated and differentiated neuronal-like malignant populations, whereas Group 4 tumors were exclusively comprised of differentiated neuronal-like neoplastic cells. SHH tumors closely resembled granule neurons of varying differentiation states that correlated with patient age. Group 3 and Group 4 tumors exhibited a developmental trajectory from primitive progenitor-like to more mature neuronal-like cells, whose relative proportions distinguished these subgroups. Cross-species transcriptomics defined distinct glutamatergic populations as putative cells-of-origin for SHH and Group 4 subtypes. Collectively, these data provide novel insights into the cellular and developmental states underlying subtype-specific medulloblastoma biology.

scholarly journals A single-cell atlas of Plasmodium falciparum transmission through the mosquito

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eliana Real ◽  
Virginia M. Howick ◽  
Farah A. Dahalan ◽  
Kathrin Witmer ◽  
Juliana Cudini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Malaria Transmission ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Complex Life Cycle ◽  
Transmission Cycle ◽  
Host Tropism ◽  
Gene Usage ◽  
Conserved Gene ◽  
Species Specific

AbstractMalaria parasites have a complex life cycle featuring diverse developmental strategies, each uniquely adapted to navigate specific host environments. Here we use single-cell transcriptomics to illuminate gene usage across the transmission cycle of the most virulent agent of human malaria - Plasmodium falciparum. We reveal developmental trajectories associated with the colonization of the mosquito midgut and salivary glands and elucidate the transcriptional signatures of each transmissible stage. Additionally, we identify both conserved and non-conserved gene usage between human and rodent parasites, which point to both essential mechanisms in malaria transmission and species-specific adaptations potentially linked to host tropism. Together, the data presented here, which are made freely available via an interactive website, provide a fine-grained atlas that enables intensive investigation of the P. falciparum transcriptional journey. As well as providing insights into gene function across the transmission cycle, the atlas opens the door for identification of drug and vaccine targets to stop malaria transmission and thereby prevent disease.

Insights into therapeutic targets and biomarkers using integrated multi-‘omics’ approaches for dilated and ischemic cardiomyopathies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Austė Kanapeckaitė ◽  
Neringa Burokienė
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Learning Algorithm ◽  
Expression Profiles ◽  
Therapeutic Targets ◽  
Development Stage ◽  
Biological Data ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Tissue Remodelling ◽  
Pharmacological Management

Abstract At present, heart failure (HF) treatment only targets the symptoms based on the left ventricle dysfunction severity; however, the lack of systemic ‘omics’ studies and available biological data to uncover the heterogeneous underlying mechanisms signifies the need to shift the analytical paradigm towards network-centric and data mining approaches. This study, for the first time, aimed to investigate how bulk and single cell RNA-sequencing as well as the proteomics analysis of the human heart tissue can be integrated to uncover HF-specific networks and potential therapeutic targets or biomarkers. We also aimed to address the issue of dealing with a limited number of samples and to show how appropriate statistical models, enrichment with other datasets as well as machine learning-guided analysis can aid in such cases. Furthermore, we elucidated specific gene expression profiles using transcriptomic and mined data from public databases. This was achieved using the two-step machine learning algorithm to predict the likelihood of the therapeutic target or biomarker tractability based on a novel scoring system, which has also been introduced in this study. The described methodology could be very useful for the target or biomarker selection and evaluation during the pre-clinical therapeutics development stage as well as disease progression monitoring. In addition, the present study sheds new light into the complex aetiology of HF, differentiating between subtle changes in dilated cardiomyopathies (DCs) and ischemic cardiomyopathies (ICs) on the single cell, proteome and whole transcriptome level, demonstrating that HF might be dependent on the involvement of not only the cardiomyocytes but also on other cell populations. Identified tissue remodelling and inflammatory processes can be beneficial when selecting targeted pharmacological management for DCs or ICs, respectively.

scholarly journals Comprehensive single-cell sequencing reveals the stromal dynamics and tumor-specific characteristics in the microenvironment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lanqi Gong ◽  
Dora Lai-Wan Kwong ◽  
Wei Dai ◽  
Pingan Wu ◽  
Shanshan Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Rna Sequencing ◽  
Progression Free Survival ◽  
Developmental Trajectory ◽  
Free Survival ◽  
Genetic Profiling ◽  
Single Cell Rna Sequencing ◽  
Infiltrating Cells ◽  
Patient Prognosis

AbstractThe tumor microenvironment (TME) of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) harbors a heterogeneous and dynamic stromal population. A comprehensive understanding of this tumor-specific ecosystem is necessary to enhance cancer diagnosis, therapeutics, and prognosis. However, recent advances based on bulk RNA sequencing remain insufficient to construct an in-depth landscape of infiltrating stromal cells in NPC. Here we apply single-cell RNA sequencing to 66,627 cells from 14 patients, integrated with clonotype identification on T and B cells. We identify and characterize five major stromal clusters and 36 distinct subpopulations based on genetic profiling. By comparing with the infiltrating cells in the non-malignant microenvironment, we report highly representative features in the TME, including phenotypic abundance, genetic alternations, immune dynamics, clonal expansion, developmental trajectory, and molecular interactions that profoundly influence patient prognosis and therapeutic outcome. The key findings are further independently validated in two single-cell RNA sequencing cohorts and two bulk RNA-sequencing cohorts. In the present study, we reveal the correlation between NPC-specific characteristics and progression-free survival. Together, these data facilitate the understanding of the stromal landscape and immune dynamics in NPC patients and provides deeper insights into the development of prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets in the TME.

scholarly journals Single-cell map of diverse immune phenotypes in the acute myeloid leukemia microenvironment

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rongqun Guo ◽  
Mengdie Lü ◽  
Fujiao Cao ◽  
Guanghua Wu ◽  
Fengcai Gao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acute Myeloid Leukemia ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Myeloid Leukemia ◽  
Immune Cell ◽  
Immune Surveillance ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Developmental Trajectory ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Cell Phenotypes ◽  
Acute Myeloid

Abstract Background Knowledge of immune cell phenotypes, function, and developmental trajectory in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) microenvironment is essential for understanding mechanisms of evading immune surveillance and immunotherapy response of targeting special microenvironment components. Methods Using a single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) dataset, we analyzed the immune cell phenotypes, function, and developmental trajectory of bone marrow (BM) samples from 16 AML patients and 4 healthy donors, but not AML blasts. Results We observed a significant difference between normal and AML BM immune cells. Here, we defined the diversity of dendritic cells (DC) and macrophages in different AML patients. We also identified several unique immune cell types including T helper cell 17 (TH17)-like intermediate population, cytotoxic CD4+ T subset, T cell: erythrocyte complexes, activated regulatory T cells (Treg), and CD8+ memory-like subset. Emerging AML cells remodels the BM immune microenvironment powerfully, leads to immunosuppression by accumulating exhausted/dysfunctional immune effectors, expending immune-activated types, and promoting the formation of suppressive subsets. Conclusion Our results provide a comprehensive AML BM immune cell census, which can help to select pinpoint targeted drug and predict efficacy of immunotherapy.

scholarly journals Comprehensive analysis of single cell ATAC-seq data with SnapATAC

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rongxin Fang ◽  
Sebastian Preissl ◽  
Yang Li ◽  
Xiaomeng Hou ◽  
Jacinta Lucero ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
Single Cell Analysis ◽  
Expression Patterns ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Cellular Heterogeneity ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Open Chromatin ◽  
Cell Type ◽  
Process Data ◽  
Cell Type Specific

AbstractIdentification of the cis-regulatory elements controlling cell-type specific gene expression patterns is essential for understanding the origin of cellular diversity. Conventional assays to map regulatory elements via open chromatin analysis of primary tissues is hindered by sample heterogeneity. Single cell analysis of accessible chromatin (scATAC-seq) can overcome this limitation. However, the high-level noise of each single cell profile and the large volume of data pose unique computational challenges. Here, we introduce SnapATAC, a software package for analyzing scATAC-seq datasets. SnapATAC dissects cellular heterogeneity in an unbiased manner and map the trajectories of cellular states. Using the Nyström method, SnapATAC can process data from up to a million cells. Furthermore, SnapATAC incorporates existing tools into a comprehensive package for analyzing single cell ATAC-seq dataset. As demonstration of its utility, SnapATAC is applied to 55,592 single-nucleus ATAC-seq profiles from the mouse secondary motor cortex. The analysis reveals ~370,000 candidate regulatory elements in 31 distinct cell populations in this brain region and inferred candidate cell-type specific transcriptional regulators.

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