GSE117156 Single cell dissection of plasma cell heterogeneity in symptomatic and asymptomatic myeloma

Contributors : Guy Ledergor ; Assaf Weiner ; Elli Papaemmanuil ; Ido AmitSeries Type : Expression profiling by high throughput sequencingOrganism : Homo sapiensMultiple myeloma (MM), a plasma cell (PC) malignancy, is the second most common blood cancer. Despite extensive research, disease heterogeneity within and between patients is poorly characterized, hampering efforts for early diagnosis and improved treatments. Here, we apply single cell RNA-seq to study the heterogeneity of 40 individuals along the MM progression spectrum. We define malignant PC at single cell resolution, demonstrating high inter-patient variability that can be explained by expression of known MM drivers and additional putative factors. Within newly diagnosed patients, we identify extensive sub-clonal structures for 10/29 patients. In asymptomatic patients with early disease and in minimal residual disease post-treatment, we detect tumor PC for a subset of the patients, with the same drivers of active myeloma. Single cell analysis of rare circulating tumor cells (CTC) allows detection of malignant PC, which reflect the BM disease. Our work establishes scRNA-seq for dissecting blood malignancies and devising detailed molecular characterization of tumor cells in symptomatic and asymptomatic patients.
Source: GEO: Gene Expression Omnibus - Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Tags: Expression profiling by high throughput sequencing Homo sapiens Source Type: research