Single-nucleus transcriptomic profiles of glial cells in human dorsal root ganglion and spinal cord

Glial cells are present throughout the entire nervous system and paly a crucial role in regulating physiological and pathological functions, such as infections, acute injuries and chronic neurodegenerative disorders. The glial cells mainly include astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system (CNS), and satellite glial cells (SGCs) in the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Although the glial subtypes and functional heterogeneity is relatively well understood in mice by recent studies using single-cell or single-nucleus RNA-sequencing, no evidence yet has elucidate the transcriptomic profiles of glia cells in PNS and CNS. Here, we used high-throughput single-nucleus RNA-sequencing to map the cellular and functional heterogeneity of SGCs in human dorsal root ganglion (DRG), and astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes in human spinal cord. In addition, we compared the human findings with previous single-nucleus transcriptomic profiles of glial cells from mouse DRG and spinal cord. This work will comprehensively profile glial cells heterogeneity and will provide a powerful resource for probing the cellular basis of human physiological and pathological conditions related to glial cells. Overall design: Single-nucleus transcriptomic profiles of glial cells in DRG and spinal cord from 3 human donors

胶质细胞广泛分布于整个神经系统，在调控生理与病理生理功能中发挥关键作用，参与的过程包括感染、急性损伤及慢性神经退行性疾病等。中枢神经系统（central nervous system, CNS）内的胶质细胞主要包括星形胶质细胞（astrocytes）、小胶质细胞（microglia）与少突胶质细胞（oligodendrocytes），外周神经系统（peripheral nervous system, PNS）内则以卫星胶质细胞（satellite glial cells, SGCs）为主。尽管近期依托单细胞或单细胞核RNA测序技术开展的研究已较为充分地阐明了小鼠体内胶质细胞的亚型与功能异质性，但目前仍未有研究明确人类外周神经系统与中枢神经系统内胶质细胞的转录组特征。本研究依托高通量单细胞核RNA测序技术，绘制了人类背根神经节（dorsal root ganglion, DRG）内卫星胶质细胞，以及人类脊髓内星形胶质细胞、小胶质细胞与少突胶质细胞的细胞与功能异质性图谱。此外，本研究将人类样本的分析结果与既往小鼠背根神经节及脊髓胶质细胞的单细胞核转录组图谱进行了比对分析。本研究将全面解析胶质细胞的异质性，为探究与胶质细胞相关的人类生理及病理生理过程的细胞基础提供宝贵的研究资源。实验设计概述：采集3名人类供体的背根神经节与脊髓组织，对其中的胶质细胞开展单细胞核转录组测序分析。