Epigenomics and Single-cell Sequencing Define a Developmental Hierarchy in Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis [scRNA-seq]

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare neoplasm predominantly affecting children. It occupies a characteristic hybrid position between cancers and inflammatory diseases, which makes it an attractive model for studying cancer development. To explore the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of LCH and its characteristic clinical heterogeneity, we investigated the transcriptomic and epigenomic diversity in primary LCH lesions. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, we identified multiple recurrent types of LCH cells within these biopsies, including putative LCH progenitor cells and several subsets of differentiated LCH cells. We confirmed the presence of proliferative LCH cells in all analysed biopsies using immunohistochemistry, and we defined the epigenomic and gene-regulatory basis of the different LCH cell subsets using chromatin profiling. In summary, our single-cell analysis of LCH uncovered an unexpected degree of cellular, transcriptomic, and epigenomic heterogeneity among LCH cells, reflecting complex developmental hierarchies in LCH lesions.