Ethanol exposure drives colon location-specific cell composition changes in a normal colon crypt 3D organoid model
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ABSTRACT: Here, we used bulk RNA-seq data derived from healthy colon organoids (un)exposed to ethanol. Through the use of external single cell RNA-seq data, we estimate changes in cell composition that are more pronounced in distal colon organoids following ethanol treatment. We extend this analysis by inferring cell-type-specific effects of ethanol treatment on colon organoids.
Project description:Alcohol is a consistently identified risk factor for colon cancer. However, the molecular mechanism underlying its effect on normal colon crypt cells remains poorly understood. We employed RNA-sequencing to asses transcriptomic response to ethanol exposure (0.2% vol:vol) in 3D organoid lines derived from healthy colon (n = 34). Paired regression analysis identified 2,162 differentially expressed genes in response to ethanol. When stratified by colon location, a far greater number of differentially expressed genes were identified in organoids derived from the left versus right colon, many of which corresponded to cell-type specific markers. To test the hypothesis that the effects of ethanol treatment on colon organoid populations were in part due to differential cell composition, we incorporated external single cell RNA-sequencing data from normal colon biopsies to estimate cellular proportions following single cell deconvolution. We inferred cell-type-specific changes, and observed an increase in transit amplifying cells following ethanol exposure that was greater in organoids from the left than right colon, with a concomitant decrease in more differentiated cells. If this occurs in the colon following alcohol consumption, this would lead to an increased zone of cells in the lower crypt where conditions are optimal for cell division and the potential to develop mutations.
Project description:Here, we used bulk RNA-seq data derived from healthy colon organoids (un)exposed to aspirin. Through the use of external single cell RNA-seq data, we estimate changes in cell composition. We extend this analysis by controlling for cell composition and performing WGCNA to identify modules of co-expression differentially affected by aspirin treatment in colon organoids.
Project description:Here, we used bulk RNA-seq data derived from healthy colon organoids (un)exposed to carcinogen. Through the use of external single cell RNA-seq data, we estimate changes in cell composition. We extend this analysis by controlling for cell composition and performing WGCNA to identify modules of co-expression differentially affected by carcinogen treatment in colon organoids.
Project description:Here, we used bulk RNA-seq data derived from healthy colon organoids exposed to two differing calcium concentrations. Through the use of external single cell RNA-seq data, we estimate changes in cell composition and gene expression brought about by high calcium conditions and relate those effects to colorectal cancer.
Project description:It is not known why cancers arising in anatomically distinct locations but within the same tissue type can exhibit stark differences in molecular, pathological and clinical features. Cancers arising in proximal and distal sites of the colon are emblematic of these above differences as the proximal and distal colon cancers harbor differences in key molecular features, with BRAFV600E oncogene predominantly occurring in proximal colon cancers in the context of the increased promoter DNA methylation phenotype (CIMP-high), while distal colon cancers lack these molecular features. We determined the molecular basis of tissue-location specificity of driver mutations using normal mouse derived organoid models for colon cancer initiation. We show that the homeobox transcription factor, Cdx2, which is downregulated by DNA methylation in proximal colon cancers, plays distinct roles in regulating stem cell and differentiation in proximal compared to distal colon stem cells. Loss of Cdx2 altered the differentiation and stem cell programs and result in transformation by BRAFV600E specifically in the proximal but not distal colon stem cells. Analyses of RNA expression and Cdx2-binding to target genomic regions revealed that Cdx2 was a key effector of the transcriptional response to differentiation cues in proximal colon cells. This proximal colon-specific transcriptional program concurrently is tumor suppressive, and its loss sufficiently creates permissive state for oncogenic-BRAF mutations. The transcriptional program associated with Cdx2 loss in mouse proximal organoids matches that of human proximal colon cancers with downregulated CDX2 expression due to epigenetic silencing. Our analyses reveal that developmental and lineage-restricted transcription factors maintain tissue-location specific transcriptional programs which create critical dependencies for tumor initiation.
Project description:It is not known why cancers arising in anatomically distinct locations but within the same tissue type can exhibit stark differences in molecular, pathological and clinical features. Cancers arising in proximal and distal sites of the colon are emblematic of these above differences as the proximal and distal colon cancers harbor differences in key molecular features, with BRAFV600E oncogene predominantly occurring in proximal colon cancers in the context of the increased promoter DNA methylation phenotype (CIMP-high), while distal colon cancers lack these molecular features. We determined the molecular basis of tissue-location specificity of driver mutations using normal mouse derived organoid models for colon cancer initiation. We show that the homeobox transcription factor, Cdx2, which is downregulated by DNA methylation in proximal colon cancers, plays distinct roles in regulating stem cell and differentiation in proximal compared to distal colon stem cells. Loss of Cdx2 altered the differentiation and stem cell programs and result in transformation by BRAFV600E specifically in the proximal but not distal colon stem cells. Analyses of RNA expression and Cdx2-binding to target genomic regions revealed that Cdx2 was a key effector of the transcriptional response to differentiation cues in proximal colon cells. This proximal colon-specific transcriptional program concurrently is tumor suppressive, and its loss sufficiently creates permissive state for oncogenic-BRAF mutations. The transcriptional program associated with Cdx2 loss in mouse proximal organoids matches that of human proximal colon cancers with downregulated CDX2 expression due to epigenetic silencing. Our analyses reveal that developmental and lineage-restricted transcription factors maintain tissue-location specific transcriptional programs which create critical dependencies for tumor initiation.
Project description:We aimed to investigate transcriptional changes in human colon cancer organoids with the BRAF-V600E mutation and in human colon cancer organoids in which the BRAF-V600E mutation was corrected by means of CRISPR genome editing. RNAseq was performed at USEQ at the UMC Utrecht (The Netherlands).
Project description:Experiment intended to obtain expression profiles of iPSC-derived human colon organoids compared to undifferentiated human iPSCs and a patient-derived colon organoid line