Single-cell analysis reveals early manifestation of cancerous phenotype in pre-malignant esophageal cells.

ABSTRACT: Cellular heterogeneity plays a pivotal role in a variety of functional processes in vivo including carcinogenesis. However, our knowledge about cell-to-cell diversity and how differences in individual cells manifest in alterations at the population level remains very limited mainly due to the lack of appropriate tools enabling studies at the single-cell level. We present a study on changes in cellular heterogeneity in the context of pre-malignant progression in response to hypoxic stress. Utilizing pre-malignant progression of Barrett's esophagus (BE) as a disease model system we studied molecular mechanisms underlying the progression from metaplastic to dysplastic (pre-cancerous) stage. We used newly developed methods enabling measurements of cell-to-cell differences in copy numbers of mi

SUBMITTER: Wang J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3792915 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature