Project description:Here, we have developed a novel methodology called IRIS (Imaging Reconstruction using Indexed Sequencing) that enables cost-effective spatial transcriptomics profiling without relying on optical imaging. Through neighborhood interaction-based reconstruction, IRIS allows extensive analysis of large tissue sections and many replicates with adjustable mapping resolution at only a fraction of the cost of other commercial platforms. With the IRIS platform, we reconstructed a large area spatial area with two whole mouse brain coronal sections. Moreover, we also created a spatially resolved transcriptome atlas of the mouse brain and identified aging-associated changes in gene expression and spatial organization across various brain cell types. Further analysis of cell-cell interaction changes identified aging-associated foci in white matter regions enriched with inflammatory subtypes of microglia and oligodendrocytes. Overall, the IRIS methodology cost-effective and ease-of-use approach makes it broadly applicable to the studies of spatial gene expression changes in various systems.
Project description:The mammalian brain can be divided into distinct structural and functional regions to perform a variety of diverse functions, but during normal aging, exactly how each region is affected, and the information interaction changes between different regions, remains largely unknown. To gain a better insight into these processes, here we generate a single-cell spatial transcriptomic (ST) atlas of young and old mice brains involving cerebrum, brain stem and fiber tracts regions. Based on the unbiased classification of spatial molecular atlas, 27 distinguished brain spatial domains were obtained, which are similar to known anatomical regions, but slightly different. Through differential expression analysis and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), we identified aging-related genes and pathways that vary in a coordinated or opposite manner across regions. Combined with single-cell transcriptomic data, we characterized the spatial distribution of cell types, identified an up-regulated gene Ifi27 across regions and cell types in VIS region. Through ligand-receptor interaction analysis, we identified all possible information interaction changes between regions with aging. In summary, we establish a brain spatial molecular atlas (accessible online at https:) to provide a rich resource of spatially differentially expressed genes and information interaction, which may help to understand aging and provide novel insights into the molecular mechanism of brain aging.
Project description:These data were used in the spatial transcriptomics analysis of the article titled \\"Single-Cell and Spatial Transcriptomics Analysis of Human Adrenal Aging\\".
Project description:Aging is a key driver of cognitive decline and the predominant risk factor for several neurodegenerative diseases. Recent behavioral studies as well as structural and functional MRI data suggest that aging does not impact the brain in a uniform manner but follows region- and age-specific trajectories. Yet so far, quantitative analyses of the molecular dynamics in the aging brain have been limited to few regions at low temporal resolution. Here we use the 10X Visium platform to perform spatial transcriptomics (Spatial-seq) of equivalent coronal sections of the mouse brain at young (6 months), middle (18 months) and old (21 months) age.
Project description:The enormous cellular diversity and complex tissue organization of the brain have hindered systematic characterization of its age-related changes in cellular and molecular architecture and mechanistic understanding of its functional decline and degeneration during aging. Here we generated a high-resolution cell atlas of brain aging within the frontal cortex and striatum using spatially resolved single-cell transcriptomics and quantified the changes in gene expression and spatial organization of major cell types in these regions over the lifespan of mice. We observed more pronounced changes in the composition, gene expression and spatial organization of non-neuronal cells over neurons. Our data revealed molecular and spatial signatures of glial and immune cell activation during aging, particularly within the white matter of the corpus callosum, and identified both similarities and differences in cell activation patterns induced by aging and systemic inflammatory challenge. These results provide critical insights into age-related decline and inflammation in the brain.
Project description:Genetic analyses suggest that alterations in gene expression at the molecular and tissue levels can have profound effects on aging for multi-cellular organisms. However, much remains unknown about the normal pattern of genetic changes in different tissues and how these tissues interact during aging. To investigate tissue-specific aging systematically, we measured expression profiles of aging in Drosophila melanogaster in seven tissues representing nervous, muscular, digestive, renal, reproductive, and storage systems. In each tissue, we identified hundreds of age-related genes mostly showing gradual changes of transcript levels with age. Age-relatedgenes showed clear tissue-specific transcriptional patterns; less than 10% of age-related genes in each tissue shared expression patterns with any other tissue; less than 20% of age-related biological processes were shared between tissues. A significant portion of tissue-specific age-related genes are those involved in physiological functions regulated by the corresponding tissue. However, limited overlaps of age-related function groups among tissues particularly those involved in proteasome function suggest some common mechanisms of transcription regulation in aging across tissues. This study defined global, temporal and spatial changes associated withaging at the molecular and tissue levels. Analyses indicated that different tissues might age in different patterns or at different rates. This study addressed comprehensively the relationship of age-related changes among different tissues in one organism, providing a foundation to address tissue-specific regulation in aging. RNA was then amplified by a one-step linear amplification protocol to generate amplified RNA (aRNA). Experiment aRNA refers to amplified RNA from flies of 15, 20, 30, 45 and 60 days old, and reference aRNA refers to amplified RNA from flies of 3 days old, and experiment and reference aRNAs were labeled with fluorescent dye Cy3 and Cy5, respectively. For each tissue, RNA from the corresponding tissue of 3-day old flies was used as the reference RNA and expression profiles at each of the five age-points was measured twice by using independently prepared duplicated samples. Seven types of tissues or organs of the male fly strain w1118 , accessory gland, testis, brain, gut, malpighian tubule, dorsal thoracic muscle and abdominal fat body were hand dissected out of flies at age of 3, 15, 20, 30, 45 and 60 days old. Tissues or organs from four males of the same age were pooled together and used for each RNA sample preparation.
Project description:Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) often results in diverse molecular responses, challenging traditional proteomic studies that measure average changes at tissue levels and fail to capture the complexity and heterogeneity of the affected tissues. Spatial proteomics offers a solution by providing insights into sub-region-specific alterations within tissues. This study focuses on the hippocampal sub-regions, analyzing proteomic expression profiles in mice at the acute (1 day) and subacute (7 days) phases of post-TBI to understand subregion-specific vulnerabilities and long-term consequences. Methods: Three mice brains were collected from each group including Sham, 1-day post-TBI and 7-day post-TBI. Hippocampal subregions were extracted using Laser Microdissection (LMD); and subsequently analyzed by label-free quantitative proteomics. Results: The spatial analysis reveals region-specific protein abundance changes, highlighting the elevation of FN1, LGALS3BP, HP, and MUG-1 in the stratum moleculare (SM), suggesting potential immune cell enrichment post-TBI. Notably, established markers of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, IGHM and B2M, exhibit specific upregulation in the dentate gyrus bottom (DG2) independent of direct mechanical injury. Metabolic pathway analysis identifies disturbances in glucose and lipid metabolism, coupled with activated cholesterol synthesis pathways enriched in SM at 7-Day post-TBI and subsequently in deeper DG1 and DG2 suggesting a role in neurogenesis and onset of recovery. Coordinated activation of neuroglia and microtubule dynamics in DG2 suggest recovery mechanisms in less affected regions. Cluster analysis revealed spatial variations post-TBI, indicative of dysregulated neuronal plasticity and neurogenesis and further predisposition to neurological disorders. TBI-induced protein upregulation (MUG-1, PZP, GFAP, TJP, STAT-1 and CD44) across hippocampal sub-regions indicates shared molecular responses and links to neurological disorders. Spatial variations were demonstrated by proteins dysregulated in both or either of the time-points exclusively in each subregion (ELAVL2, CLIC1 in PL, CD44 and MUG-1 in SM, and SHOC2, LGALS3 in DG). Conclusions: Utilizing advanced spatial proteomics techniques, the study unveils the dynamic molecular responses in distinct hippocampal subregions post-TBI. It uncovers region-specific vulnerabilities and dysregulated neuronal processes, and potential recovery-related pathways that contribute to our understanding of TBI’s neurological consequences and provides valuable insights for biomarker discovery and therapeutic targets.
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous small RNA molecules that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally. Work in Caenorhabditis elegans has shown that specific miRNAs function in lifespan regulation and in a variety of age-associated pathways, but the roles of miRNAs in the aging of vertebrates are not well understood. We examined the expression of small RNAs in whole brains of young and old mice by deep sequencing and report here on the expression of 233 known miRNAs and identification of 41 novel miRNAs. Of these miRNAs, 75 known and 18 novel miRNAs exhibit greater than 2.0-fold expression changes. The majority of expressed miRNAs in our study decline in relative abundance in the aged brain, in agreement with trends observed in other miRNA studies in aging tissues and organisms. Target prediction analysis suggests that many of our novel aging-associated miRNAs target genes in the insulin signaling pathway, a central node of aging-associated genetic networks. These novel miRNAs may thereby regulate aging-related functions in the brain. Since mouse miRNAs are conserved in humans, the aging-affected brain miRNAs we report here may represent novel regulatory genes that function during aging in the human brain. 2 samples examined: Mouse brain from two young (5 months) and two old animals (24-25 months).