%0 Journal Article
%T A single cell atlas of circulating immune cells involved in diabetic retinopathy.
%A Liao D
%A Fan W
%A Li N
%A Li R
%A Wang X
%A Liu J
%A Wang H
%A Hou S
%J iScience
%V 27
%N 2
%D 2024 Feb 16
%M 38327792
%F 6.107
%R 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109003
%X This study focused on examining the exact role of circulating immune cells in the development of diabetic retinopathy (DR). In vitro co-culture experiments showed that peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from patients with type 1 DR crucially modulated the biological functions of human retinal microvascular endothelial cells (HRMECs), consequently disrupting their normal functionality. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) study revealed unique differentially expressed genes and pathways in circulating immune cells among healthy controls, non-diabetic retinopathy (NDR) patients, and DR patients. Of significance was the observed upregulation of JUND in each subset of PBMCs in patients with type 1 DR. Further studies showed that downregulating JUND in DR patient-derived PBMCs led to the amelioration of HRMEC dysfunction. These findings highlighted the notable alterations in the transcriptomic patterns of circulating immune cells in type 1 DR patients and underscored the significance of JUND as a key factor for PBMCs in participating in the pathogenesis of DR.