Gene expression profiling of human tissue‐resident immune cells: Comparing blood and liver

In this study, we describe a method to reliably characterize intrahepatic leukocyte populations using flow cytometry and next‐generation RNA sequencing on fresh human liver biopsies. Over the last decades, immune responses of viral hepatitis patients, and of other liver diseases, have been incomplet...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of leukocyte biology 2019-03, Vol.105 (3), p.603-608
Main Authors: Boeijen, Lauke L., Oord, Gertine W., Hou, Jun, der Heide‐Mulder, Marieke, Gaggar, Anuj, Li, Li, Fletcher, Simon P., Knegt, Robert J., Boonstra, André
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Brief Conclusive Report
Cells: Natural Killer
Cells: T Lymphocytes
Female
Gene Expression Profiling
Hepatitis B - genetics
Hepatitis B - immunology
Humans
Liver - immunology
Lymphocytes - metabolism
Male
Middle Aged
Process: Gene Regulation
Process: Host‐Pathogen Interactions
Process: Lymphoid Cell Mediated Immunity
RNA, Messenger - genetics
RNA, Messenger - metabolism
Signal Transduction
System Biology & Immunogenetics
Techniques: Multiparameter FACS
Tissue/System: Digestive
Tissue/System: Lymphoid
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Summary:In this study, we describe a method to reliably characterize intrahepatic leukocyte populations using flow cytometry and next‐generation RNA sequencing on fresh human liver biopsies. Over the last decades, immune responses of viral hepatitis patients, and of other liver diseases, have been incompletely characterized. Most studies include peripheral blood samples only, foregoing the possibility to investigate the site of inflammation directly. Here, we show that with an optimized protocol that combines cell sorting and RNA sequencing, we can perform a side by side comparison of both intrahepatic and peripheral immune cells. Using core liver biopsies from chronic hepatitis B virus patients, we show that the expression levels of IFN‐stimulated genes and leukocyte‐specific genes are markedly different in the liver compartment as compared to the peripheral blood. These observations emphasize the need to sample the liver directly. The variation of gene expression profiles in these chronic hepatitis B patients was considerable, despite the uniform treatment with nucleotide analogs and absence of liver inflammation in these patients. Finally, we show that this method can provide a detailed characterization of previously undetected liver‐specific effects of novel candidate therapeutic compounds. The use of fluorescence‐activated cell sorting and next generation RNA sequencing to maximize the information yield of studies investigating tissue‐resident leukocytes in human liver.
ISSN:0741-5400
1938-3673
DOI:10.1002/JLB.6AB0718-278R