single-cell RNA sequencing of liver metastases of colorectal cancer

Metastasis is the primary cause of cancer-related mortality in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. How to improve therapeutic options for patients with metastatic CRC (mCRC) is the core question for CRC treatment. However, the complexity and diversity of stromal context of the tumor microenvironment (TME) in liver metastases of CRC is not fully understood, and its influence on response to chemotherapy is unclear. Here we provide an in-depth analysis of transcriptional landscape of primary CRC, matched liver metastases and blood at single-cell resolution, and perform a systematic examination of transcriptional changes and phenotypic alteration of the TME in response to preoperative chemotherapy (PC).Our study may provide a foundation to investigate the cellular mechanisms underlying liver metastasis of CRC and response to preoperative chemotherapy, and open up new possibilities for predicting and guiding therapeutic responsiveness.