Project description:<p><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong> Reptiles exhibit a wide variety of skin colors, which serve essential roles in survival and reproduction. However, the molecular basis of these conspicuous colors remains unresolved.</p><p><strong>RESULTS:</strong> We investigate color morph-enriched Asian vine snakes (<em>Ahaetulla prasina</em>), to explore the mechanism underpinning color variations. Transmission electron microscopy imaging and metabolomics analysis indicates that chromatophore morphology (mainly iridophores) is the main basis for differences in skin color. Additionally, we assemble a 1.77 Gb high-quality chromosome-anchored genome of the snake. Genome-wide association study and RNA sequencing reveal a conservative amino acid substitution (p.P20S) in <em>SMARCE1</em>, which may be involved in the regulation of chromatophore development initiated from neural crest cells. <em>SMARCE1</em> knockdown in zebrafish and immunofluorescence verify the interactions among <em>SMARCE1</em>, iridophores, and <em>tfec</em>, which may determine color variations in the Asian vine snake.</p><p><strong>CONCLUSIONS:</strong> This study reveals the genetic associations of color variation in Asian vine snakes, providing insights and important resources for a deeper understanding of the molecular and genetic mechanisms related to reptilian coloration.</p>
Project description:To investigate changes in immune cell signatures in the transcriptomes of DLE lesional skin versus normal skin Comparison of the transcriptome of DLE lesional skin with normal skin
Project description:Comparison of transcriptome of HS samples and Abdominoplasty skin Aim: The purpose of this study was to harness mRNA expression arrays to investigate the transcriptome profile in HS compared to control skin.
Project description:Background: Skin biopsies represent a gold standard in skin immunology and pathology but can cause pain and induce scarring. Non-invasive techniques will facilitate study recruitment of e.g. patients with pediatric atopic dermatitis (AD), hand eczema or facial dermatitis. Objective: By RNA sequencing, we examined whether the stratum corneum transcriptome in AD skin can be assessed by tape stripping, as compared to the epidermal transcriptome of AD in skin biopsies. To make the procedure clinically relevant tape strips were stored and shipped at room temperature for up to 3 days. Methods: Nine adult Caucasian AD patients and three healthy volunteers were included. Tape samples were collected from non-lesional and lesional skin. Biopsies were collected from lesional skin and were split into epidermis and dermis. Total RNA was extracted, and shotgun sequencing was performed. Results: Shotgun sequencing could be performed on skin cells obtained from two consecutive tape strips which had been stored and shipped at room temperature for up to three days. The most prominent differences between the tape strip and biopsy derived transcriptome were due to structural genes, while established molecular markers of AD, including CCL17, CCL22, IL17A and S100A7-S100A9, were also identified in tape strip samples. Furthermore, the tape strip derived transcriptome showed promise in also analysing the skin microbiome. Conclusion: Our study shows that the stratum corneum (SC) transcriptome of AD can be assessed by tape stripping the skin, supporting that this method may be central in future skin biomarker research.