Single cell immune landscape of human atherosclerosis reveals the transcriptional signature of PLIN2hi/TREM1hi inflammatory lipid-associated macrophages and its association with cerebrovascular complications.

Atherosclerosis is a lipid-driven inflammatory disease.However, evidence emerging so far from single cell atlases suggests a dichotomy between lipid associated and inflammatory macrophage states. Here, we present the most inclusive reference atlas of human intraplaque immune cell communities to date. Carotid plaques were collected from patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy. Tissues were enzymatically digested, and single cells were sorted for CD45+ cells. CD45+ single cell suspensions were processed using the 10x Genomics platform with the aim to captue 5,000 cells/sample