%0 Journal Article
%T Integrative single-cell RNA-seq and spatial transcriptomics analyses reveal diverse apoptosis-related gene expression profiles in EGFR-mutated lung cancer.
%A Izumi M
%A Fujii M
%A Kobayashi IS
%A Ho V
%A Kashima Y
%A Udagawa H
%A Costa DB
%A Kobayashi SS
%J Cell Death Dis
%V 15
%N 8
%D 2024 Aug 9
%M 39122703
暂无%R 10.1038/s41419-024-06940-y
%X In EGFR-mutated lung cancer, the duration of response to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) is limited by the development of acquired drug resistance. Despite the crucial role played by apoptosis-related genes in tumor cell survival, how their expression changes as resistance to EGFR-TKIs emerges remains unclear. Here, we conduct a comprehensive analysis of apoptosis-related genes, including BCL-2 and IAP family members, using single-cell RNA sequence (scRNA-seq) and spatial transcriptomics (ST). scRNA-seq of EGFR-mutated lung cancer cell lines captures changes in apoptosis-related gene expression following EGFR-TKI treatment, most notably BCL2L1 upregulation. scRNA-seq of EGFR-mutated lung cancer patient samples also reveals high BCL2L1 expression, specifically in tumor cells, while MCL1 expression is lower in tumors compared to non-tumor cells. ST analysis of specimens from transgenic mice with EGFR-driven lung cancer indicates spatial heterogeneity of tumors and corroborates scRNA-seq findings. Genetic ablation and pharmacological inhibition of BCL2L1/BCL-XL overcome or delay EGFR-TKI resistance. Overall, our findings indicate that BCL2L1/BCL-XL expression is important for tumor cell survival as EGFR-TKI resistance emerges.