Single-Nucleus RNA Sequencing Reveals Ferroptosis as a Potential Contributor to the Pathogenesis of Focal Cortical Dysplasia

Single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) was carried out on epileptogenic cortical tissues from 18 patients with FCD and 6 perilesional control samples with normal histology. Data were analyzed using Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP) for dimensionality reduction and visualization. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified and subjected to Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses. UCell scoring and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) were applied to assess pathway activity. Expression levels of ferroptosis-related genes (FRGs) were validated by immunofluorescence, and biochemical assays quantified the levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA), and lipid peroxides (LPO).