Abstract

Kidney is a highly complex organ comprised of diverse cell types and subpopulations. This cellular complexity complicates efforts to understand both physiology and disease mechanisms. The recent advent of single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) technologies has enabled us to dissect the cellular heterogeneity of kidney in unprecedented detail by profiling transcriptomic signatures at single-cell resolution. In addition to the widely used droplet microfluidics-based approaches, other alternative methods such as split-pool barcoding are emerging with substantially enhanced throughput and cost efficiency. Furthermore, evolving complementary technologies such as single-cell epigenetic profiling are now being leveraged together with scRNA-seq to describe comprehensive gene regulatory networks. Cell-specific transcriptomic characterizations of both mouse and human kidneys allow us to gain a comprehensive picture of biological processes in healthy and diseased kidneys. Successful application of scRNA-seq to biosamples including urine cells suggests possible future applications in diagnostics and precision medicine. The maturation of widely available bioinformatic tools now enables any researcher to utilize scRNA-seq without a deep background in informatics or computer science. Indeed, a basic understanding of single-cell omics and computational methods is increasingly becoming essential for investigators. In this chapter, we review the fundamentals of scRNA-seq methods, data analysis and future opportunities for scRNA-seq in nephrology.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationInnovations in Nephrology
Subtitle of host publicationBreakthrough Technologies in Kidney Disease Care
PublisherSpringer International Publishing
Pages87-102
Number of pages16
ISBN (Electronic)9783031115707
ISBN (Print)9783031115691
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1 2022

Keywords

  • High-throughput nucleotide sequencing
  • Kidney diseases
  • Organoids
  • RNA sequence analysis
  • Single-cell analysis

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