Purpose: We performed a time-course single-cell RNA-seq of the somatic cells of the XX mouse gonads to study the cell population heterogeneity and the genetic program during their differentiation. Methods: We collected gonads from NR5A1-eGFP transgenic embryos at six embryonic stages: E10.5, E11.5, E12.5, E13.5, E16.5 and P6. Methods: Cells were capture with the C1 autoprep system and cDNA sequenced with Illumina HiSeq 2000. Results: One cell population was detected at E10.5 and give rise to both Granulosa and steroidogenic precursor cells. A precursor cell population remains undifferentiated at P6 and are likely to be theca cell precursors. Conclusion: Our study is, to date, the most granular transcriptomic study of the developing mouse ovary and provide a more complete model of somatic cell differentiation during female sex determination. Overall design: 663 cells were collected in total. 71 cells at E10.5, 106 cells at E11.5, 164 cells at E12.5, 106 cells at E13.5, 95 cells at E16.5, and 121 at P6. We performed two independent captures for each embryonic stage to reach a reasonable number of cells except for E10.5 where we capture enough cells in one experiment.
Dissecting Cell Lineage Specification and Sex Fate Determination in Gonadal Somatic Cells Using Single-Cell Transcriptomics.
Specimen part, Cell line, Subject
View SamplesSertoli cells (SCs), the only somatic cells within seminiferous tubules, associate intimately with developing germ cells. They not only provide physical and nutritional support but also secrete factors essential to the complex developmental processes of germ cell proliferation and differentiation. The SC transcriptome must therefore adapt rapidly during the different stages of spermatogenesis. We report comprehensive genome-wide expression profiles of pure populations of SCs isolated at 5 distinct stages of the first wave of mouse spermatogenesis, using RNA sequencing technology. We were able to reconstruct about 13 901 high-confidence, nonredundant coding and noncoding transcripts, characterized by complex alternative splicing patterns with more than 45% comprising novel isoforms of known genes. Interestingly, roughly one-fifth (2939) of these genes exhibited a dynamic expression profile reflecting the evolving role of SCs during the progression of spermatogenesis, with stage-specific expression of genes involved in biological processes such as cell cycle regulation, metabolism and energy production, retinoic acid synthesis, and blood-testis barrier biogenesis. Finally, regulatory network analysis identified the transcription factors endothelial PAS domain-containing protein 1 (EPAS1/Hif2a), aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator (ARNT/Hif1ß), and signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) as potential master regulators driving the SC transcriptional program. Our results highlight the plastic transcriptional landscape of SCs during the progression of spermatogenesis and provide valuable resources to better understand SC function and spermatogenesis and its related disorders, such as male infertility. Overall design: Genome-wide expression profiling analysis using Illumina next-generation sequencing technology
Research resource: the dynamic transcriptional profile of sertoli cells during the progression of spermatogenesis.
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