Identifying the mechanism of allergen immunotherapy using single cell and bulk gene expression information.

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19H03696
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 54020:Connective tissue disease and allergy-related
• Research Institution: University of Tsukuba
• Principal Investigator: Noguchi Emiko 筑波大学, 医学医療系, 教授 (40344882)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 尾崎 遼 筑波大学, 医学医療系, 准教授 (10743346) ; 渋谷 彰 筑波大学, 医学医療系, 教授 (80216027)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: シングルセル / 花粉症 / 免疫療法

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Single-cell RNA-seq (scRNAseq) has made it possible to estimate cell types such as CD4-positive T cells, regulatory T cells, NK cells, and B cells, and to measure the comprehensive gene expression of individual cells without prior information on the target molecules. The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of cedar antigens on the gene expression of cedar cells. In this study, scRNAseq of peripheral blood mononuclear cells was performed on patients treated with sublingual immunotherapy against Japanese cedar pollen before and after the start of treatment, and cell types and gene expression related to treatment response were examined. In the comparison of pre- and post-treatment, we detected several genes whose expression levels were statistically significantly changed in response to treatment.

Free Research Field

アレルギー

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

アレルゲン免疫療法は根治が期待できる治療法として近年特に注目されている。本研究は治療応答にかかわる遺伝子やパスウェイを同定するためにscRNA-seqの手法を用いて解析を行った。本研究成果は、アレルゲン免疫療法がなぜ効果的であるかについての分子学的なメカニズム解明につながる可能性がある。