Single cell transcriptome analysis of mouse carotid body glomus cells

The carotid body (CB) is a major arterial chemoreceptor containing glomus cells whose activities are regulated by changes in arterial blood contents including oxygen. We employed the single cell RNA­Seq method by performing next-generation sequencing on single glomus cell­derived cDNAs to eliminate contamination of genes derived from other cell types present in the CB. This study has generated a CB expression profile containing novel glomus cell specific genes. The wealth of information provided through this study offers a valuable foundation for identifying molecules functioning in the CB. Overall design: 8 single CB glomus cells that were confirmed expressing tyrosine hydroxylase (Th), ubiquitin carboxyl-terminal esterase L1 (Uchl1) and potassium channel subfamily K member 3 (Kcnk3) were harvested from P4-5 wild type mice and subjected to single-cell RNA-Seq