ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1557564
Single-cell Sequencing Reveals Dysregulated Cell Type Perturbations and Critical Mediator Communication Remodelling in Colorectal Cancer
Provisionally accepted
- Yangpu Hospital, Tongji University, Yangpu, China
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The heterogeneity of colorectal cancer (CRC) and its complex immune microenvironment pose significant challenges for treatment. Understanding the cellular composition and dynamic changes is essential for uncovering mechanisms of tumor progression. To investigate the cellular heterogeneity and immune microenvironment of CRC, identifying critical subpopulations, functional pathways, and prognostic biomarkers, single-cell transcriptomic data from 41 CRC samples across four datasets were integrated. Bioinformatic analyses identified cellular subpopulations, cell communication networks, and prognostic biomarkers. The expression patterns, clinical significance and biological function of TUBB were validated in vitro.A distinct epithelial subpopulation with proliferative and invasive features was identified, promoting tumor progression by resisting apoptosis and remodeling the extracellular matrix. ActMono, a terminal state of myeloid cells, was enriched in tumors and linked to disease progression. Cell communication analysis highlighted galectin signaling in immune regulation. A prognostic model (CRS) based on secretory immune cell-related genes identified TUBB as a key molecule influencing the cell cycle and extracellular matrix remodeling, with its expression patterns, clinical significance and biological effects validated in vitro.This study reveals critical subpopulations, signaling pathways, and biomarkers in CRC, providing insights into tumor progression and potential therapeutic strategies.
Keywords: single-cell sequencing, colorectal cancer, tumour microenvironment, Cellular heterogeneity, Immune Regulation, TUBB
Received: 08 Jan 2025; Accepted: 22 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Liu, Xu, Zhang, Zhang, Zhang, Sun and Yu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Hailong Liu, Yangpu Hospital, Tongji University, Yangpu, China
Bin Sun, Yangpu Hospital, Tongji University, Yangpu, China
Zicheng Yu, Yangpu Hospital, Tongji University, Yangpu, China
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