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Single-cell assay for transposase-accessible chromatin by sequencing (scATAC-seq) has emerged as a powerful tool for dissecting regulatory landscapes and cellular heterogeneity. However, an exploration of systemic biases among scATAC-seq technologies has remained absent. In this study, we benchmark the performance of eight scATAC-seq methods across 47 experiments using human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) as a reference sample and develop PUMATAC, a universal preprocessing pipeline, to handle the various sequencing data formats. Our analyses reveal significant differences in sequencing library complexity and tagmentation specificity, which impact cell-type annotation, genotype demultiplexing, peak calling, differential region accessibility and transcription factor motif enrichment. Our findings underscore the importance of sample extraction, method selection, data processing and total cost of experiments, offering valuable guidance for future research. Finally, our data and analysis pipeline encompasses 169,000 PBMC scATAC-seq profiles and a best practices code repository for scATAC-seq data analysis, which are freely available to extend this benchmarking effort to future protocols.

Studies of human lung development have focused on epithelial and mesenchymal cell types and function, but much less is known about the developing lung immune cells, even though the airways are a major site of mucosal immunity after birth. An unanswered question is whether tissue-resident immune cells play a role in shaping the tissue as it develops in utero. Here, we profiled human embryonic and fetal lung immune cells using scRNA-seq, smFISH, and immunohistochemistry. At the embryonic stage, we observed an early wave of innate immune cells, including innate lymphoid cells, natural killer cells, myeloid cells, and lineage progenitors. By the canalicular stage, we detected naive T lymphocytes expressing high levels of cytotoxicity genes and the presence of mature B lymphocytes, including B-1 cells. Our analysis suggests that fetal lungs provide a niche for full B cell maturation. Given the presence and diversity of immune cells during development, we also investigated their possible effect on epithelial maturation. We found that IL-1β drives epithelial progenitor exit from self-renewal and differentiation to basal cells in vitro. In vivo, IL-1β-producing myeloid cells were found throughout the lung and adjacent to epithelial tips, suggesting that immune cells may direct human lung epithelial development.

Human limbs emerge during the fourth post-conception week as mesenchymal buds, which develop into fully formed limbs over the subsequent months1. This process is orchestrated by numerous temporally and spatially restricted gene expression programmes, making congenital alterations in phenotype common2. Decades of work with model organisms have defined the fundamental mechanisms underlying vertebrate limb development, but an in-depth characterization of this process in humans has yet to be performed. Here we detail human embryonic limb development across space and time using single-cell and spatial transcriptomics. We demonstrate extensive diversification of cells from a few multipotent progenitors to myriad differentiated cell states, including several novel cell populations. We uncover two waves of human muscle development, each characterized by different cell states regulated by separate gene expression programmes, and identify musculin (MSC) as a key transcriptional repressor maintaining muscle stem cell identity. Through assembly of multiple anatomically continuous spatial transcriptomic samples using VisiumStitcher, we map cells across a sagittal section of a whole fetal hindlimb. We reveal a clear anatomical segregation between genes linked to brachydactyly and polysyndactyly, and uncover transcriptionally and spatially distinct populations of the mesenchyme in the autopod. Finally, we perform single-cell RNA sequencing on mouse embryonic limbs to facilitate cross-species developmental comparison, finding substantial homology between the two species.

Single-cell transcriptomics has allowed unprecedented resolution of cell types/states in the human lung, but their spatial context is less well defined. To (re)define tissue architecture of lung and airways, we profiled five proximal-to-distal locations of healthy human lungs in depth using multi-omic single cell/nuclei and spatial transcriptomics (queryable at lungcellatlas.org ). Using computational data integration and analysis, we extend beyond the suspension cell paradigm and discover macro and micro-anatomical tissue compartments including previously unannotated cell types in the epithelial, vascular, stromal and nerve bundle micro-environments. We identify and implicate peribronchial fibroblasts in lung disease. Importantly, we discover and validate a survival niche for IgA plasma cells in the airway submucosal glands (SMG). We show that gland epithelial cells recruit B cells and IgA plasma cells, and promote longevity and antibody secretion locally through expression of CCL28, APRIL and IL-6. This new gland-associated immune niche has implications for respiratory health.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and accessory proteases (TMPRSS2 and CTSL) are needed for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) cellular entry, and their expression may shed light on viral tropism and impact across the body. We assessed the cell-type-specific expression of ACE2, TMPRSS2 and CTSL across 107 single-cell RNA-sequencing studies from different tissues. ACE2, TMPRSS2 and CTSL are coexpressed in specific subsets of respiratory epithelial cells in the nasal passages, airways and alveoli, and in cells from other organs associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission or pathology. We performed a meta-analysis of 31 lung single-cell RNA-sequencing studies with 1,320,896 cells from 377 nasal, airway and lung parenchyma samples from 228 individuals. This revealed cell-type-specific associations of age, sex and smoking with expression levels of ACE2, TMPRSS2 and CTSL. Expression of entry factors increased with age and in males, including in airway secretory cells and alveolar type 2 cells. Expression programs shared by ACE2+TMPRSS2+ cells in nasal, lung and gut tissues included genes that may mediate viral entry, key immune functions and epithelial-macrophage cross-talk, such as genes involved in the interleukin-6, interleukin-1, tumor necrosis factor and complement pathways. Cell-type-specific expression patterns may contribute to the pathogenesis of COVID-19, and our work highlights putative molecular pathways for therapeutic intervention.

The transcription factor Rora has been shown to be important for the development of ILC2 and the regulation of ILC3, macrophages and Treg cells. Here we investigate the role of Rora across CD4+ T cells in general, but with an emphasis on Th2 cells, both in vitro as well as in the context of several in vivo type 2 infection models. We dissect the function of Rora using overexpression and a CD4-conditional Rora-knockout mouse, as well as a RORA-reporter mouse. We establish the importance of Rora in CD4+ T cells for controlling lung inflammation induced by Nippostrongylus brasiliensis infection, and have measured the effect on downstream genes using RNA-seq. Using a systematic stimulation screen of CD4+ T cells, coupled with RNA-seq, we identify upstream regulators of Rora, most importantly IL-33 and CCL7. Our data suggest that Rora is a negative regulator of the immune system, possibly through several downstream pathways, and is under control of the local microenvironment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Disordered transcriptomes of cancer encompass direct effects of somatic mutation on transcription, coordinated secondary pathway alterations, and increased transcriptional noise. To catalog the rules governing how somatic mutation exerts direct transcriptional effects, we developed an exhaustive pipeline for analyzing RNA sequencing data, which we integrated with whole genomes from 23 breast cancers. Using X-inactivation analyses, we found that cancer cells are more transcriptionally active than intermixed stromal cells. This is especially true in estrogen receptor (ER)-negative tumors. Overall, 59% of substitutions were expressed. Nonsense mutations showed lower expression levels than expected, with patterns characteristic of nonsense-mediated decay. 14% of 4,234 rearrangements caused transcriptional abnormalities, including exon skips, exon reusage, fusions, and premature polyadenylation. We found productive, stable transcription from sense-to-antisense gene fusions and gene-to-intergenic rearrangements, suggesting that these mutation classes drive more transcriptional disruption than previously suspected. Systematic integration of transcriptome with genome data reveals the rules by which transcriptional machinery interprets somatic mutation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

S treptomyces coelicolor is a model for studying bacteria renowned as the foremost source of natural products used clinically. Post-genomic studies have revealed complex patterns of gene expression and links to growth, morphological development and individual genes. However, the underlying regulation remains largely obscure, but undoubtedly involves steps after transcription initiation. Here we identify sites involved in RNA processing and degradation as well as transcription within a nucleotide-resolution map of the transcriptional landscape. This was achieved by combining RNA-sequencing approaches suited to the analysis of GC-rich organisms. E scherichia coli was analysed in parallel to validate the methodology and allow comparison. Previously, sites of RNA processing and degradation had not been mapped on a transcriptome-wide scale for E . coli. Through examples, we show the value of our approach and data sets. This includes the identification of new layers of transcriptional complexity associated with several key regulators of secondary metabolism and morphological development in S . coelicolor and the identification of host-encoded leaderless mRNA and rRNA processing associated with the generation of specialized ribosomes in E . coli. New regulatory small RNAs were identified for both organisms. Overall the results illustrate the diversity in mechanisms used by different bacterial groups to facilitate and regulate gene expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sequencing of the genome of Propionibacterium acnes produced a catalogue of genes many of which enable this organism to colonise skin and survive exposure to the elements. Despite this platform, there was little understanding of the gene regulation that gives rise to an organism that has a major impact on human health and wellbeing and causes infections beyond the skin. To address this situation, we have undertaken a genome- wide study of gene regulation using a combination of improved differential and global RNA-sequencing and an analytical approach that takes into account the inherent noise within the data. Results: We have produced nucleotide-resolution transcriptome maps that identify and differentiate sites of transcription initiation from sites of stable RNA processing and mRNA cleavage. Moreover, analysis of these maps provides strong evidence for 'pervasive' transcription and shows that contrary to initial indications it is not biased towards the production of antisense RNAs. In addition, the maps reveal an extensive array of riboswitches, leaderless mRNAs and small non-protein-coding RNAs alongside vegetative promoters and post-transcriptional events, which includes unusual tRNA processing. The identification of such features will inform models of complex gene regulation, as illustrated here for ribonucleotide reductases and a potential quorum-sensing, two-component system. Conclusions: The approach described here, which is transferable to any bacterial species, has produced a step increase in whole-cell knowledge of gene regulation in P. acnes. Continued expansion of our maps to include transcription associated with different growth conditions and genetic backgrounds will provide a new platform from which to computationally model the gene expression that determines the physiology of P. acnes and its role in human disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Precisely characterizing the breakpoints of copy number variants (CNVs) is crucial for assessing their functional impact. However, fewer than 10% of known germline CNVs have been mapped to the single-nucleotide level. We characterized the sequence breakpoints from a dataset of all CNVs detected in three unrelated individuals in previous array-based CNV discovery experiments. We used targeted hybridization-based DNA capture and 454 sequencing to sequence 324 CNV breakpoints, including 315 deletions. We observed two major breakpoint signatures: 70% of the deletion breakpoints have 1−30 bp of microhomology, whereas 33% of deletion breakpoints contain 1−367 bp of inserted sequence. The co-occurrence of microhomology and inserted sequence is low (10%), suggesting that there are at least two different mutational mechanisms. Approximately 5% of the breakpoints represent more complex rearrangements, including local microinversions, suggesting a replication-based strand switching mechanism. Despite a rich literature on DNA repair processes, reconstruction of the molecular events generating each of these mutations is not yet possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have not yet reached a point at which routine sequencing of large numbers of whole eukaryotic genomes is feasible, and so it is often necessary to select genomic regions of interest and to enrich these regions before sequencing. There are several enrichment approaches, each with unique advantages and disadvantages. Here we describe our experiences with the leading target-enrichment technologies, the optimizations that we have performed and typical results that can be obtained using each. We also provide detailed protocols for each technology so that end users can find the best compromise between sensitivity, specificity and uniformity for their particular project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report an alternative approach to transcriptome sequencing for the Illumina Genome Analyzer, in which the reverse transcription reaction takes place on the flowcell. No amplification is performed during the library preparation, so PCR biases and duplicates are avoided, and because the template is poly(A)+ RNA rather than cDNA, the resulting sequences are necessarily strand-specific. The method is compatible with paired- or single-end sequencing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses neuroblastoma has a childhood cancer that resembles developmental stages of the neural crest and has not established what developmental processes neuroblastoma cancer cells represent. Topics include the sympathoblastic state has a universal feature of neuroblastoma cells, transcending cell cluster diversity, individual patients, and clinical phenotypes; and advances in single-cell transcriptomics have enabled the direct comparison of cancer and normal reference cells.

The thymus provides a nurturing environment for the differentiation and selection of T cells, a process orchestrated by their interaction with multiple thymic cell types. We used single-cell RNA sequencing to create a cell census of the human thymus across the life span and to reconstruct T cell differentiation trajectories and T cell receptor (TCR) recombination kinetics. Using this approach, we identified and located in situ CD8αα + T cell populations, thymic fibroblast subtypes, and activated dendritic cell states. In addition, we reveal a bias in TCR recombination and selection, which is attributed to genomic position and the kinetics of lineage commitment. Taken together, our data provide a comprehensive atlas of the human thymus across the life span with new insights into human T cell development., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.)

Tissue-resident immune cells are important for organ homeostasis and defense. The epithelium may contribute to these functions directly or by cross-talk with immune cells. We used single-cell RNA sequencing to resolve the spatiotemporal immune topology of the human kidney. We reveal anatomically defined expression patterns of immune genes within the epithelial compartment, with antimicrobial peptide transcripts evident in pelvic epithelium in the mature, but not fetal, kidney. A network of tissue-resident myeloid and lymphoid immune cells was evident in both fetal and mature kidney, with postnatal acquisition of transcriptional programs that promote infection-defense capabilities. Epithelial-immune cross-talk orchestrated localization of antibacterial macrophages and neutrophils to the regions of the kidney most susceptible to infection. Overall, our study provides a global overview of how the immune landscape of the human kidney is zonated to counter the dominant immunological challenge., (Copyright © 2019 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.)

Transcriptomics has been revolutionized by massive throughput RNA-seq. To date, the ongoing decrease in sequencing cost and recent eruption of single-cell related protocols have boosted a demand for single-cell RNA sequencing projects. Although the single-cell RNA-Seq (scRNA-Seq) approach is close to the conventional "bulk" RNA-seq, several features that are unique to scRNA-seq should be taken into consideration in order to obtain high-quality libraries and unbiased sequencing data.In this chapter I give recommendations for setting up the single cell-suitable laboratory environment.

Background: Sequencing of the genome of Propionibacterium acnes produced a catalogue of genes many of which enable this organism to colonise skin and survive exposure to the elements. Despite this platform, there was little understanding of the gene regulation that gives rise to an organism that has a major impact on human health and wellbeing and causes infections beyond the skin. To address this situation, we have undertaken a genome-wide study of gene regulation using a combination of improved differential and global RNA-sequencing and an analytical approach that takes into account the inherent noise within the data., Results: We have produced nucleotide-resolution transcriptome maps that identify and differentiate sites of transcription initiation from sites of stable RNA processing and mRNA cleavage. Moreover, analysis of these maps provides strong evidence for 'pervasive' transcription and shows that contrary to initial indications it is not biased towards the production of antisense RNAs. In addition, the maps reveal an extensive array of riboswitches, leaderless mRNAs and small non-protein-coding RNAs alongside vegetative promoters and post-transcriptional events, which includes unusual tRNA processing. The identification of such features will inform models of complex gene regulation, as illustrated here for ribonucleotide reductases and a potential quorum-sensing, two-component system., Conclusions: The approach described here, which is transferable to any bacterial species, has produced a step increase in whole-cell knowledge of gene regulation in P. acnes. Continued expansion of our maps to include transcription associated with different growth conditions and genetic backgrounds will provide a new platform from which to computationally model the gene expression that determines the physiology of P. acnes and its role in human disease.

The unifying feature of second-generation sequencing technologies is that single template strands are amplified clonally onto a solid surface prior to the sequencing reaction. To convert template strands into a compatible state for attachment to this surface, a multistep library preparation is required, which typically culminates in amplification by the PCR. PCR is an inherently biased process, which decreases the efficiency of data acquisition. Flowcell reverse transcription sequencing is a method of transcriptome sequencing for Illumina sequencers in which the reverse transcription reaction is performed on the flowcell by using unamplified, adapter-ligated mRNA as a template. This approach removes PCR biases and duplicates, generates strand-specific paired-end data and is highly reproducible. The procedure can be performed quickly, taking 2 d to generate clusters from mRNA.

We report a genome-wide scan for susceptibility loci to hypertension in a single Kyrgyz family where 10 of the affected relatives developed hypertension before the age of 35 years, and some members have suffered stroke. The early onset of disease and the geographic isolation of the Kyrgyz population are both expected to select for an increased influence of genetic factors in hypertension. We genotyped 44 individuals from this Krygyz family with 374 microsatellite markers, covering a 10-centimorgan map. Nonparametric analysis suggests that affected status is linked to loci in the chromosome 2q23 to q37 genomic interval, whereas 2-point parametric analysis returned a logarithm of odds score of 2.67 for marker D2S2330 (2q24.3). Multipoint linkage analysis substantiated the evidence for a hypertension susceptibility allele in the chromosome 2q23 to q36 region. Fine mapping and haplotype analysis implicate that the genetic lesion resides between markers D2S2380 (166.5 cM) and D2S335 (175.9 cM). This finding supports other recent studies of early onset hypertension suggesting that the region 2q24.3 to q31.1 encompasses a novel locus for premature hypertension.