Single-cell transcriptomics: A new tool for studying diabetic kidney disease

Abstract

The kidney is a complex organ comprising various functional partitions and special cell types that play important roles in maintaining homeostasis in the body. Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is the leading cause of end-stage renal disease and is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Owing to the complexity and heterogeneity of kidney structure and function, the mechanism of DKD development has not been fully elucidated. Single-cell sequencing, including transcriptomics, epigenetics, metabolomics, and proteomics etc., is a powerful technology that enables the analysis of specific cell types and states, specifically expressed genes or pathways, cell differentiation trajectories, intercellular communication, and regulation or co-expression of genes in various diseases. Compared with other omics, RNA sequencing is a more developed technique with higher utilization of tissues or samples. This article reviewed the application of single-cell transcriptomics in the field of DKD and highlighted the key signaling pathways in specific tissues or cell types involved in the occurrence and development of DKD. The comprehensive understanding of single-cell transcriptomics through single-cell RNA-seq and single-nucleus RNA-seq will provide us new insights into the pathogenesis and treatment strategy of various diseases including DKD.

Interferon gamma in the pathogenesis of hypertension − recent insights

“…Recent studies have validated the use of urinary cell transcriptomes as a reliable method to detect and quantify the transcriptome of almost all types of cells found in the kidneys and urinary tract [57]. This technique can be used to characterize kidney injury and ongoing repair [58] along with other kidney diseases [59]. Analysis of first-morning urine cell bulk transcriptomes of 47 nondiabetic hypertensive patients from the SPRINT trial (systolic blood pressure intervention) revealed increased representation of proinflammatory networks in the 29 BP difficult-to-control group compared to the 18 control patients [34 Obesity, partially characterized by chronic lowgrade inflammation [60], correlates with an increased risk of hypertension [61], and the rates of worldwide obesity continue to increase, thereby concurrently increasing the rates of hypertension [61].…”

New insights into the role of immunity and inflammation in diabetic kidney disease in the omics era

“…Besides, the differences in immune cell phenotypes of mice and humans also partly contribute to the discrepancies between experimental models and clinical trials, highlighting the need to incorporate human samples in preclinical studies ( 26 ). The promise of the multiple omics approach to decipher the underlying molecular mechanisms of disease phenotypes has been well-described ( 27 , 28 ). Thus, research integrating omics layers (genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics) in cohorts of DKD patients will enable us to further understand the complexity of this disease, as well as provide insights into novel therapeutic strategies.…”

Single‐Cell Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals the Alleviating Effect of Anemoside B4 on Murine Diabetic Nephropathy

“…[ 16 ] Within less than 15 years, it has been widely used in the life sciences and has gradually become an important tool for resolving physiopathological changes in cell origin and differentiation, disease evolutionary mechanisms and cellular microenvironment. [ 17,18 ] RNA‐seq analyses have been performed on RNA isolated from whole kidneys, from kidney cortices or from microdissected glomeruli or tubulointerstitial compartments, [ 19–21 ] it makes analysis of gene expression and cell–cell interaction more efficient and detailed in DKD compared to traditional DNA microarrays chip. [ 22 ]…”