The development of complex tissues requires that mitotic progenitor cells integrate information from the environment. The highly varied outcomes of such integration processes undoubtedly depend at least in part upon variations among the gene expression programs of individual progenitor cells. To date, there has not been a comprehensive examination of these differences among progenitor cells of a particular tissue. Here, we used comprehensive gene expression profiling to define these differences among individual progenitor cells of the vertebrate retina. Retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) have been shown by lineage analysis to be multipotent throughout development and to produce distinct types of daughter cells in a temporal, conserved order. A total of 42 single RPCs were profiled on Affymetrix arrays. An extensive amount of heterogeneity in gene expression among RPCs, even among cells isolated from the same developmental time point, was observed. While many classes of genes displayed heterogeneity of gene expression, the expression of transcription factors constituted a significant amount of the observed heterogeneity. Additionally, the expression of cell cycle related transcripts showed differences among those associated with G2 and M, versus G1 and S phase, suggesting different levels of regulation for these genes. These data provide insights into the types of processes and genes that are fundamental to cell fate choices, proliferation decisions, and, for cells of the central nervous system, the underpinnings of the formation of complex circuitry.
Individual retinal progenitor cells display extensive heterogeneity of gene expression.
Specimen part
View SamplesRetinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is a progressive retinal degeneration in which the retina loses nearly all of its photoreceptor cells and undergoes major structural changes. Little is known regarding the role the resident glia, the Mller glia, play in the progression of the disease. Here we define gene expression changes in Mller glial cells (MGCs) from two different mouse models of RP, the retinal degeneration 1 (rd1) and rhodopsin knock-out (Rhod-ko) models. The RNA repertoire of 28 single MGCs was comprehensively profiled, and a comparison was made between MGC from wild type (WT) and mutant retinas. Two time points were chosen for analysis, one at the peak of rod photoreceptor death and one during the period of cone photoreceptor death. MGCs have been shown to respond to retinal degeneration by undergoing gliosis, a process marked by the upregulation of GFAP. In this data, many additional transcripts were found to change. These can be placed into functional clusters, such as retinal remodeling, stress response, and immune related response. It is noteworthy that a high degree of heterogeneity among the individual cells was observed, possibly due to their different spatial proximities to dying cells, and/or inherent heterogeneity among MGCs.
Gene expression changes within Müller glial cells in retinitis pigmentosa.
Specimen part
View SamplesLoss of Notch1 in retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) during postnatal retinal development results in the overproduction of rod photoreceptors at the expense of interneurons and glia. To examine the molecular underpinnings of this observation, microarray analysis of singla retinal cells from wildtype (WT) or Notch1 conditional knockout (N1-CKO) retinas was performed. The majority of N1-CKO cells lost expression of known Notch target genes. These cells also had low levels of RPC and cell cycle genes, and robustly upregulated rod precursor genes. In addition, single WT cells, in which cell cycle marker genes were downregulated, expressed markers of both rod photoreceptors and interneurons. These results demonstrate that individual, newly postmitotic retinal cells can begin to differentiate into more than one cell type, and that this transitional state may be dependent on Notch1 signaling.
Notch1 is required in newly postmitotic cells to inhibit the rod photoreceptor fate.
Specimen part
View SamplesIdentification of genes expressed in a preferential manner in the developing ciliary body/iris will provide a starting point for future functional analyses. To identify candidate genes expressed in a variety of ocular tissues during development, we have profiled single cells from the developing eye. Post hoc identification of the origin of these cells showed that they included cells from the periphery of the developing optic cup. By comparing the expression profiles of these cells to many retinal cell types, candidate genes for preferential expression in the periphery were identified.
Identification of genes expressed preferentially in the developing peripheral margin of the optic cup.
Specimen part
View SamplesThe vertebrate retina uses diverse neuronal cell types arrayed into complex neural circuits to extract, process and relay information from the visual scene to the higher order processing centers of the brain. Amacrine cells, a diverse class of inhibitory interneurons, are thought to mediate the majority of the processing of the visual signal that occurs within the retina. Despite morphological characterization, the number of known molecular markers of amacrine cell types is still much smaller than the 26 morphological types that have been identified. Furthermore, it is not known how this diversity arises during development. Here, we have combined in vivo genetic labeling and single cell genome-wide expression profiling to: 1) Identify specific molecular types of amacrine cells; 2) Demonstrate the molecular diversity of the amacrine cell class.
Development and diversification of retinal amacrine interneurons at single cell resolution.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesPrevious lineage analyses have shown that retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) are multipotent throughout development, and expression profiling studies have shown a great deal of molecular heterogeneity among RPCs. To determine if the molecular heterogeneity predicts that an RPC will produce particular types of progeny, clonal lineage analysis was used to investigate the progeny of a subset of RPCs, those that express the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor, Olig2. In contrast to the large and complex set of clones generated by viral marking of random embryonic RPCs, the embryonic Olig2+ RPCs underwent terminal divisions, producing small clones with primarily two of the five cell types being made by the pool of RPCs at that time. The embryonically produced cell types made by Olig2+ RPCs were cone photoreceptors and horizontal cell (HC) interneurons. Moreover, the embryonic Olig2+ RPC did not make the later Olig2+ RPC. The later, postnatal Olig2+ RPCs also made terminal divisions, which were biased towards production of rod photoreceptors and amacrine cell (AC) interneurons. These data indicate that the multipotent progenitor pool is made up of distinctive types of RPCs, which have biases towards producing subsets of retinal neurons in a terminal division, with the types of neurons produced varying over time. This strategy is similar to that of the developing Drosophila melanogaster ventral nerve cord, with the Olig2+ cells behaving as ganglion mother cells.
Transcription factor Olig2 defines subpopulations of retinal progenitor cells biased toward specific cell fates.
Specimen part
View SamplesDuring development of the central nervous system (CNS), cycling uncommitted progenitor cells give rise to a variety of distinct neuronal and glial cell types. As these different cell types are born, they progress from newly specified cells to fully differentiated neurons and glia. In order to define the developmental processes of individual cell types, single cell expression profiling was carried out on developing ganglion and amacrine cells of the murine retina. Individual cells from multiple developmental stages were isolated and profiled on Affymetrix oligonucleotide arrays. These experiments have yielded an expanded view of the processes underway in developing retinal ganglion and amacrine cells, as well as several hundred new marker genes for these cell types. In addition, this study has allowed for the definition of some of the molecular heterogeneity both between developing ganglion and amacrine cells and among subclasses of each cell type.
Molecular heterogeneity of developing retinal ganglion and amacrine cells revealed through single cell gene expression profiling.
Specimen part
View SamplesHigh-throughput systems for gene expression profiling have been developed and matured rapidly through the past decade. Broadly, these can be divided into two categories: hybridization-based and sequencing-based approaches. With data from different technologies being accumulated, concerns and challenges are raised regarding data comparability and agreement across technologies. Within an ongoing large-scale cross-platform data comparison framework, we report here a comparison based on identical samples between one-dye DNA microarray platforms and MPSS (Massively Parallel Signature Sequencing). The DNA microarray platforms generally provided highly correlated data, while moderate correlations between microarrays and MPSS were obtained. Disagreements between the two types of technologies can be attributed to limitations inherent to both technologies. The variation found between pooled biological replicates underlines the importance of exercising caution in identification of differential expression, especially for the purposes of biomarker discovery. Based on different principles, hybridization-based and sequencing-based technologies should be considered complementary to each other, rather than competitive, and currently, both provide indispensable tools for transcriptome profiling.
Comparison of hybridization-based and sequencing-based gene expression technologies on biological replicates.
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View SamplesFour Kcng4-cre;stop-YFP mouse retinas from two mice were dissected, dissociated and FACS sorted, and single cell RNA-seq libraries were generated for 384 single cells using Smart-seq2. Aligned bam files are generated for 383 samples as one failed to align. Overall design: Four mouse retinas (labeled 1la, 1Ra, and 2la, 2Ra respective from the two mice) were used, and 96 single cells from each were processed using Smart-seq2. Total 384 cells Smart-seq2 analysis of P17 FACS sorted retinal cells from the Kcng4-cre;stop-YFP mice (Kcng4tm1.1(cre)Jrs mice [Duan et al., Cell 158, 793-807, 2015] crossed to the cre-dependent reporter Thy1-stop-YFP Line#1 [Buffelli et al., Nature 424, 430-434, 2003])
Comprehensive Classification of Retinal Bipolar Neurons by Single-Cell Transcriptomics.
Specimen part, Subject
View Samples15,000 GFP+ cells were collected from two replicates of the Htr3a GFP line into RNAlater (ThermoFisher, AM7024). RNA was purified and bulk RNA-seq was performed using the Ovation RNA-seq system V2 (Nugen, 7102-32) Overall design: Bulk RNA-seq analysis of Type 5 retinal bipolar cells (2 biological replicates)
Comprehensive Classification of Retinal Bipolar Neurons by Single-Cell Transcriptomics.
Specimen part, Subject
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