For a study, researchers sought to identify the gene expression profiles of individual cells involved in the development of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). AAA was the most frequent pathological aortic dilatation resulting in aortic rupture, which was deadly. Aortic degeneration is caused by both immunological and structural cells. However, gene-specific changes were unclear how these cellular subsets were affected. Therefore, AAAs and control tissues were subjected to single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analyses. By comparing gene expression profiles and specific receptor-ligand interactions, AAA-related alterations were investigated. To pinpoint the genes essential for AAA development, an integrative analysis of scRNA-seq data with significant genome-wide association research data was carried out. With the aid of scRNA-seq, they present the first thorough analysis of the cellular landscape in human AAA tissues. About 8 cell lineages were represented by seventeen groups that were found by unbiased clustering analysis of transcriptional patterns. When it comes to immune cells, clustering analysis showed 4 T-cell subpopulations and 5 monocyte/macrophage subpopulations, each of which had unique transcriptional profiles when compared to controls in AAAs. Numerous pathways that were only expressed in AAA tissue, such as those implicated with mitochondrial dysfunction, proliferation, and cytokine release, were discovered by gene enrichment analysis on immune subsets. Additionally, the receptor-ligand analysis identified strong connections between myeloid populations and vascular smooth muscle cells in AAA tissues. The expression of SORT1 in vascular smooth muscle cells was crucial for preserving normal aortic wall function, according to an integrated analysis of scRNA-seq data and genome-wide association research findings. Here, it provided the first comprehensive characterization of the single-cell composition of the abdominal aortic wall and showed the impact of human AAAs on the gene expression landscape.
