Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment

Small cell carcinoma of the esophagus (SCCE) is a rare and aggressively progressing malignancy that presents considerable clinical challenges.Although chemotherapy can effectively manage symptoms during the earlystages of SCCE, its long-term effectiveness is notably limited, with theunderlying mecha...

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Main Authors: Qinkai Zhang, Ziyu Gao, Ru Qiu, Jizhao Cao, Chunxiao Zhang, Wei Qin, Meiling Yang, Xinyue Wang, Ciqiu Yang, Jie Li, Dongyang Yang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-01-01
Series:Frontiers in Genetics
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2024.1477705/full
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author Qinkai Zhang
Qinkai Zhang
Qinkai Zhang
Ziyu Gao
Ru Qiu
Jizhao Cao
Chunxiao Zhang
Wei Qin
Wei Qin
Meiling Yang
Meiling Yang
Xinyue Wang
Ciqiu Yang
Jie Li
Jie Li
Dongyang Yang
Dongyang Yang
author_facet Qinkai Zhang
Qinkai Zhang
Qinkai Zhang
Ziyu Gao
Ru Qiu
Jizhao Cao
Chunxiao Zhang
Wei Qin
Wei Qin
Meiling Yang
Meiling Yang
Xinyue Wang
Ciqiu Yang
Jie Li
Jie Li
Dongyang Yang
Dongyang Yang
author_sort Qinkai Zhang
collection DOAJ
description Small cell carcinoma of the esophagus (SCCE) is a rare and aggressively progressing malignancy that presents considerable clinical challenges.Although chemotherapy can effectively manage symptoms during the earlystages of SCCE, its long-term effectiveness is notably limited, with theunderlying mechanisms remaining largely undefined. In this study, weemployed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to analyze SCCE samplesfrom a single patient both before and after chemotherapy treatment. Our analysisrevealed significant cellular plasticity and alterations in the tumormicroenvironment’s cellular composition. Notably, we observed an increase intumor cell diversity coupled with reductions in T cells, B cells, and myeloid-likecells. The pre-treatment samples predominantly featured carcinoma cells in amiddle transitional state, while post-treatment samples exhibited an expandedpresence of cells in terminal, initial-to-terminal (IniTerm), and universally alteredstates. Further analysis highlighted dynamic interactions between tumor cells andimmune cells, with significant changes detected in key signaling pathways, suchas TIGIT-PVR and MDK-SDC4. This study elucidates the complex dynamics of cellplasticity in SCCE following chemotherapy, providing new insights and identifyingpotential therapeutic targets to enhance treatment efficacy.
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institution Kabale University
issn 1664-8021
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Genetics
spelling doaj-art-18ef891e0070499bbb267007af8a60172025-01-09T06:11:02ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Genetics1664-80212025-01-011510.3389/fgene.2024.14777051477705Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatmentQinkai Zhang0Qinkai Zhang1Qinkai Zhang2Ziyu Gao3Ru Qiu4Jizhao Cao5Chunxiao Zhang6Wei Qin7Wei Qin8Meiling Yang9Meiling Yang10Xinyue Wang11Ciqiu Yang12Jie Li13Jie Li14Dongyang Yang15Dongyang Yang16Center for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, ChinaDepartment of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Guangzhou Women and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou, Guangdong, ChinaDepartment of Thyroid Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, ChinaCenter for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, ChinaCenter for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, ChinaCenter for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, ChinaSchool of Laboratory Medicine, Guangzhou Health Science College, Guangzhou, ChinaCenter for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, ChinaMedical College, Jiaying University, Meizhou, ChinaGuangdong Cardiovascular Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangzhou, ChinaMedical Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, ChinaCenter for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, ChinaMedical Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, ChinaDepartment of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Guangzhou Women and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou, Guangdong, ChinaDepartment of Thyroid Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, ChinaMedical Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, ChinaMedical Oncology, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, ChinaSmall cell carcinoma of the esophagus (SCCE) is a rare and aggressively progressing malignancy that presents considerable clinical challenges.Although chemotherapy can effectively manage symptoms during the earlystages of SCCE, its long-term effectiveness is notably limited, with theunderlying mechanisms remaining largely undefined. In this study, weemployed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to analyze SCCE samplesfrom a single patient both before and after chemotherapy treatment. Our analysisrevealed significant cellular plasticity and alterations in the tumormicroenvironment’s cellular composition. Notably, we observed an increase intumor cell diversity coupled with reductions in T cells, B cells, and myeloid-likecells. The pre-treatment samples predominantly featured carcinoma cells in amiddle transitional state, while post-treatment samples exhibited an expandedpresence of cells in terminal, initial-to-terminal (IniTerm), and universally alteredstates. Further analysis highlighted dynamic interactions between tumor cells andimmune cells, with significant changes detected in key signaling pathways, suchas TIGIT-PVR and MDK-SDC4. This study elucidates the complex dynamics of cellplasticity in SCCE following chemotherapy, providing new insights and identifyingpotential therapeutic targets to enhance treatment efficacy.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2024.1477705/fullsmall cell carcinoma of the esophagussingle-cell RNA sequencingchemotherapytumor microenvironmentcell plasticity
spellingShingle Qinkai Zhang
Qinkai Zhang
Qinkai Zhang
Ziyu Gao
Ru Qiu
Jizhao Cao
Chunxiao Zhang
Wei Qin
Wei Qin
Meiling Yang
Meiling Yang
Xinyue Wang
Ciqiu Yang
Jie Li
Jie Li
Dongyang Yang
Dongyang Yang
Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment
Frontiers in Genetics
small cell carcinoma of the esophagus
single-cell RNA sequencing
chemotherapy
tumor microenvironment
cell plasticity
title Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment
title_full Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment
title_fullStr Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment
title_full_unstemmed Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment
title_short Single-cell RNA sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment
title_sort single cell rna sequencing elucidates cellular plasticity in esophageal small cell carcinoma following chemotherapy treatment
topic small cell carcinoma of the esophagus
single-cell RNA sequencing
chemotherapy
tumor microenvironment
cell plasticity
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2024.1477705/full
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