SUMMARY Regeneration capacity declines with age, but why juvenile organisms show enhanced tissue repair remains unexplained. Lin28a, a highly-conserved RNA binding protein expressed during embryogenesis, plays roles in development, pluripotency and metabolism. To determine if Lin28a might influence tissue repair in adults, we engineered the reactivation of Lin28a expression in several models of tissue injury. Lin28a reactivation improved hair regrowth by promoting anagen in hair follicles, and accelerated regrowth of cartilage, bone and mesenchyme after ear and digit injuries. Lin28a inhibits let-7 microRNA biogenesis; however let-7 repression was necessary but insufficient to enhance repair. Lin28a bound to and enhanced the translation of mRNAs for several metabolic enzymes, thereby increasing glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation (OxPhos). Lin28a-mediated enhancement of tissue repair was negated by OxPhos inhibition, whereas a pharmacologically-induced increase in OxPhos enhanced repair. Thus, Lin28a enhances tissue repair in some adult tissues by reprogramming cellular bioenergetics.

No abstract

A key aspect of nearly all single-cell sequencing experiments is dissociation of intact tissues into single-cell suspensions. While many protocols have been optimized for optimal cell yield, they have often overlooked the effects that dissociation can have on ex vivo gene expression. Here, we demonstrate that use of enzymatic dissociation on brain tissue induces an aberrant ex vivo gene expression signature, most prominently in microglia, which is prevalent in published literature and can substantially confound downstream analyses. To address this issue, we present a rigorously validated protocol that preserves both in vivo transcriptional profiles and cell-type diversity and yield across tissue types and species. We also identify a similar signature in postmortem human brain single-nucleus RNA-sequencing datasets, and show that this signature is induced in freshly isolated human tissue by exposure to elevated temperatures ex vivo. Together, our results provide a methodological solution for preventing artifactual gene expression changes during fresh tissue digestion and a reference for future deeper analysis of the potential confounding states present in postmortem human samples.