Application of Single-cell Sequencing in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Research

doi:10.13701/j.cnki.kqyxyj.2024.09.002

Abstract

Abstract: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a common malignant oral tumor with a tendency for metastasis, recurrence, and drug resistance. Current research on its mechanisms is insufficient. Single-cell sequencing and the spatial transcriptome technology can obtain transcriptome information at the single-cell level, enabling more in-depth research on cell populations, functions, changes, and communication. This paper provides a comprehensive summary of the application of single-cell sequencing technology in OSCC research areas such as cell typing, tumor microenvironment, tumor invasion and metastasis, therapeutic targets and prognostic markers, immune-targeted therapy, and intratumoral microbiota. It also points out the current deficiencies in research and suggests directions for future improvements.

Key words: single-cell sequencing, oral squamous cell carcinoma, tumor microenvironment, therapeutic targets, immunotherapy

QIAO Yingjie, HUANG Xinzhi. Application of Single-cell Sequencing in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Research[J]. Journal of Oral Science Research, 2024, 40(9): 762-766.

References

[1] 林辰,张心雅,马伟燕,等.空间转录组学技术及其应用的研究进展[J].厦门大学学报(自然科学版),2022,61(3):506-516.
[2] Puram SV, Tirosh I, Parikh AS, et al. Single-cell transcriptomic analysis of primary and metastatic tumor ecosystems in head and neck cancer [J]. Cell, 2017, 171(7): 1611-1624.e24.
[3] Yang W, Zhang S, Li T, et al. Single-cell analysis reveals that cancer-associated fibroblasts stimulate oral squamous cell carcinoma invasion via the TGF-β/Smad pathway [J]. Acta Biochim Biophys Sin (Shanghai), 2022, 55(2):262-273.
[4] Zhang Q, Wang Y, Xia C, et al. Integrated analysis of single-cell RNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq reveals distinct cancer-associated fibroblasts in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Ann Transl Med, 2021, 9(12): 1017.
[5] Song H, Lou C, Ma J, et al. Single-cell transcriptome analysis reveals changes of tumor immune microenvironment in oral squamous cell carcinoma after chemotherapy [J]. Front Cell Dev Biol, 2022, 10: 914120.
[6] Chen J, Yang J, Li H, et al. Single-cell transcriptomics reveal the intratumoral landscape of infiltrated T-cell subpopulations in oral squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Mol Oncol, 2021, 15(4): 866-886.
[7] Peng Y, Xiao L, Rong H, et al. Single-cell profiling of tumor-infiltrating TCF1/TCF7⁺ T cells reveals a T lymphocyte subset associated with tertiary lymphoid structures/organs and a superior prognosis in oral cancer [J]. Oral Oncol, 2021, 119: 105348.
[8] Han N, Zhou D, Ruan M, et al. Cancer cell-derived extracellular vesicles drive pre-metastatic niche formation of lymph node via IFNGR1/JAK1/STAT1-activated-PD-L1 expression on FRCs in head and neck cancer [J]. Oral Oncol, 2023, 145: 106524.
[9] Lottin M, Soudet S, Fercot J, et al. Molecular landscape of the coagulome of oral squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Cancers (Basel), 2022, 14(2): 460.
[10] Li J, Chen S, Liao Y, et al. Arecoline is associated with inhibition of cuproptosis and proliferation of cancer-associated fibroblasts in oral squamous cell carcinoma: A potential mechanism for tumor metastasis [J]. Front Oncol, 2022, 12: 925743.
[11] Reed ER, Jankowski SA, Spinella AJ, et al. β-catenin/CBP activation of mTORC1 signaling promotes partial epithelial-mesenchymal states in head and neck cancer [J]. Transl Res, 2023, 260: 46-60.
[12] Huynh NC, Huang TT, Nguyen CT, et al. Comprehensive integrated single-cell whole transcriptome analysis revealed the p-EMT tumor cells-CAFs communication in oral squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Int J Mol Sci, 2022, 23(12): 6470.
[13] Horny K, Sproll C, Peiffer L, et al. Mesenchymal-epithelial transition in lymph node metastases of oral squamous cell carcinoma is accompanied by ZEB1 expression [J]. J Transl Med, 2023, 21(1): 267.
[14] Liu YH, Chen YL, Lai TY, et al. Identification of prognostic biomarkers originating from the tumor stroma of betel quid-associated oral cancer tissues [J]. Front Oncol, 2021, 11: 769665.
[15] Hu S, Lu H, Xie W, et al. TDO2⁺ myofibroblasts mediate immune suppression in malignant transformation of squamous cell carcinoma [J]. J Clin Invest, 2022, 132(19): e157649.
[16] Gao F, Li C, Zhao X, et al. CKS2 modulates cell-cycle progression of tongue squamous cell carcinoma cells partly via modulating the cellular distribution of DUTPase [J]. J Oral Pathol Med, 2021, 50(2): 175-182.
[17] Glathar AR, Oyelakin A, Nayak KB, et al. A systemic and integrated analysis of p63-driven regulatory networks in mouse oral squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Cancers, 2023, 15(2): 446.
[18] Wang Z, Zhang H, Zhai Y, et al. Single-cell profiling reveals heterogeneity of primary and lymph node metastatic tumors and immune cell populations and discovers important prognostic significance of CCDC43 in oral squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Front Immunol, 2022, 13: 843322.
[19] Hu C, Fan J, He G, et al. Signal peptidase complex catalytic subunit SEC11A upregulation is a biomarker of poor prognosis in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [J]. PLoS One, 2022, 17(6): e0269166.
[20] Chen Z, Chen Q, Li S, et al. IL-12RB1: a novel immune prognostic biomarker for oral squamous cell carcinoma and linked to PD-1/PD-L1 expression in the tumor immune microenvironment [J]. Ann Transl Med, 2022, 10(3): 144.
[21] Meng Q, Wu F, Li G, et al. Exploring precise medication strategies for OSCC based on single-cell transcriptome analysis from a dynamic perspective [J]. Cancers, 2022, 14(19): 4801.
[22] Weusthof C, Burkart S, Semmelmayer K, et al. Establishment of a machine learning model for the risk assessment of perineural invasion in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Int J Mol Sci, 2023, 24(10): 8938.
[23] Huang C, Liang Y, Dong Y, et al. Novel prognostic matrisome-related gene signature of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Front Cell Dev Biol, 2022, 10: 884590.
[24] Han PZ, Tan LC, Ouyang QS, et al. Development and validation of a gene model predicting lymph node metastasis and prognosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma based on single-cell and bulk RNA-seq analysis [J]. J Oral Pathol Med. 2023, 52(5): 389-401.
[25] Wu L, Yang J, She P, et al. Single-cell RNA sequencing and traditional RNA sequencing reveals the role of cancer-associated fibroblasts in oral squamous cell carcinoma cohort [J]. Front Oncol, 2023, 13: 1195520.
[26] Zhou L, Zeng Z, Egloff AM, et al. Checkpoint blockade-induced CD8⁺ T cell differentiation in head and neck cancer responders [J]. J Immunother Cancer, 2022, 10(1): e004034.
[27] Luoma AM, Suo S, Wang Y, et al. Tissue-resident memory and circulating T cells are early responders to pre-surgical cancer immunotherapy [J]. Cell, 2022, 185(16): 2918-2935.e29.
[28] Zhang S, Zhang W, Zhang J. 8-Gene signature related to CD8⁺ T cell infiltration by integrating single-cell and bulk RNA-sequencing in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Front Genet, 2022, 13: 938611.
[29] He Y, Dong Y, Zhang X, et al. Lipid droplet-related PLIN2 in CD68⁺ tumor-associated macrophage of oral squamous cell carcinoma: Implications for cancer prognosis and immunotherapy [J]. Front Oncol, 2022, 12: 824235.
[30] Zhang B, Li H, Liu YT, et al. Single-cell chemokine receptor profiles delineate the immune contexture of tertiary lymphoid structures in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Cancer Lett, 2023, 558: 216105.
[31] Galeano Niño JL, Wu H, LaCourse KD, et al. Effect of the intratumoral microbiota on spatial and cellular heterogeneity in cancer [J]. Nature, 2022, 611(7937): 810-817.
[32] Arora R, Cao C, Kumar M, et al. Spatial transcriptomics reveals distinct and conserved tumor core and edge architectures that predict survival and targeted therapy response [J]. Nat Commun, 2023, 14(1): 5029.
[33] Liu Z, Zhang Z, Zhang Y, et al. Spatial transcriptomics reveals that metabolic characteristics define the tumor immunosuppression microenvironment via iCAF transformation in oral squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Int J Oral Sci, 2024, 16(1): 9.
[34] Zhi Y, Wang Q, Zi M, et al. Spatial transcriptomic and metabolomic landscapes of oral submucous fibrosis-derived oral squamous cell carcinoma and its tumor microenvironment [J]. Adv Sci (Weinh), 2024, 11(12):e2306515.
[35] Schmitd LB, Perez-Pacheco C, Bellile EL, et al. Spatial and transcriptomic analysis of perineural invasion in oral cancer [J]. Clin Cancer Res, 2022, 28(16): 3557-3572.
[36] Sun L, Kang X, Wang C, et al. Single-cell and spatial dissection of precancerous lesions underlying the initiation process of oral squamous cell carcinoma [J]. Cell Discov, 2023, 9(1): 28.
[37] Iwasa YI, Nakajima T, Hori K, et al. A spatial transcriptome reveals changes in tumor and tumor microenvironment in oral cancer with acquired resistance to immunotherapy [J]. Biomolecules, 2023, 13(12): 1685.