Single cell transcriptome signature of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) at different stages along with tumor development

HCC possesses a highly heterogeneous tumor micro-environment with dynamic populations and interaction along tumor progression. We used single cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to analyze cell composition and features of HCC. A subgroup of tumor-associated macrophages characterized with distinctive metabolic activity was identified. We further excavated its functional phenotype as well as interaction with other components and investigated the underlying molecular mechanism. Overall design: Liver dissection of the gene-induced HCC models at four different timepoints including 0 week (HCC-NL), 4 week (HCC-ES), 8 week (HCC-MS), and 12 week (HCC-LS) along tumor development were conducted and prepared into single-cell suspensions and analyzed using scRNAseq.