Single Cell Transcriptome Helps Better Understanding Crosstalk in Diabetic Kidney Disease

Abstract

Years of research revealed that crosstalk extensively existed among kidney cells, cell factors and metabolites and played an important role in the development of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). In the last few years, single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) technology provided new insight into cellular heterogeneity and genetic susceptibility regarding DKD at cell-specific level. The studies based on scRNA-seq enable a much deeper understanding of cell-specific processes such as interaction between cells. In this paper, we aim to review recent progress in single cell transcriptomic analyses of DKD, particularly highlighting on intra- or extra-glomerular cell crosstalk, cellular targets and potential therapeutic strategies for DKD.

A comprehensive mouse kidney atlas enables rare cell population characterization and robust marker discovery

“…The maturity of single-cell and single-nuclei transcriptomics becomes apparent by the ever-increasing number of publications applying these technologies. 43 , 44 Although this has given rise to a vast collection of publicly available cellular transcriptomes, researchers continue to analyze their work in an isolated environment, often without considering the data from other reports. As it has been recently noted in the literature, 34 the relationships between the populations defined in kidney single-cell studies are not clear and integrative studies are needed.…”

Crosstalk among podocytes, glomerular endothelial cells and mesangial cells in diabetic kidney disease: an updated review

“…The kidney possesses a relatively dense stroma, and kidney cells are susceptible to loss under abnormal conditions. Therefore, there is a need to optimize cell separation protocols to enhance efficiency while balancing the effects of cell separation and cell viability [ 217 , 218 ]. Presently, there are substantial variations in the number of renal cells obtained and in gene expression across different renal single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) studies.…”

“…Presently, there are substantial variations in the number of renal cells obtained and in gene expression across different renal single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) studies. These differences are largely attributed to variations in dissociation protocols, but effective standardized pipelines are currently lacking [ 217 , 218 ]. The identification of renal cell types in scRNA-seq studies primarily relies on available cell markers, which may lack specificity or even remain undiscovered [ 218 ].…”

“…These differences are largely attributed to variations in dissociation protocols, but effective standardized pipelines are currently lacking [ 217 , 218 ]. The identification of renal cell types in scRNA-seq studies primarily relies on available cell markers, which may lack specificity or even remain undiscovered [ 218 ]. Additionally, the vast amount of complex data generated by scRNA-seq demands appropriate analytical and statistical methods.…”

“…Additionally, the vast amount of complex data generated by scRNA-seq demands appropriate analytical and statistical methods. The interpretation of raw data hinges on the selection of computational tools and databases [ 218 ]. Most importantly, the results obtained from scRNA-seq require validation through subsequent experimental tests211.…”