A single-cell atlas links energy-related gene activity with vulnerable neurons in FTD-MND disease
Original source
Single-cell transcriptomic atlas of frontoinsular cortex reveals molecular correlates of selective neuronal vulnerability in FTD. (opens in a new tab)Compass summarised this from the study's abstract.
Study details
- Studied in
- Human
- Peer review
- Preprint, not yet peer reviewed
Population inferred from the title and abstract by Compass.
Related topics
Researchers used single-nucleus RNA sequencing to study frontoinsular cortex tissue from people with C9orf72-associated and sporadic frontotemporal dementia–motor neuron disease (FTD-MND) spectrum disease. They identified specific layer 2/3 and layer 5 neuron subtypes that were depleted across both genetic and sporadic disease. In control tissue, higher baseline gene activity related to cellular respiration and ATP production was associated with the neuron populations most vulnerable in disease.
Why this matters
The findings may help researchers understand why some neuron types are selectively lost in FTD-MND spectrum disease. This is a molecular study of human brain tissue and does not yet identify a treatment or change care for people living with ALS or FTD-MND.
Limitations and context
The source is a bioRxiv preprint, so the work has not yet completed peer review. The report does not provide the study size in the supplied information. The energy-related findings are associations based on gene-expression data and do not show that altered cellular respiration causes neuronal loss or that changing it would help patients.