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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Oncol.

Sec. Cancer Genetics

Volume 15 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fonc.2025.1649877

Integration of single-cell and bulk RNA sequencing to identify unique tumor stem cells and construct novel prognostic markers for assessing ESCA prognosis and drug sensitivity

Provisionally accepted
Jia  ShiJia ShiDanni  QiaoDanni QiaoQiongyang  LvQiongyang LvYaliang  FanYaliang FanHaibin  YuHaibin YuGuiming  HuGuiming HuLonghao  WangLonghao Wang*Beibei  ShaBeibei Sha*
  • Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Background: Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are crucial contributors to the development and progression of esophageal cancer (ESCA). This study utilized single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and bulk RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) to identify gene signatures of CSCs in ESCA, aiming to construct a prognostic tumor stem cell marker signature (TSCMS) model.Methods: We analyzed scRNA-seq and RNA-seq data of ESCA. CytoTRACE was used to quantify the stemness of tumor-derived epithelial cell clusters. The TSCMS model was developed using Lasso-Cox regression, and its prognostic significance was evaluated via Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, Cox regression, and ROC curve analysis. Drug response predictions were conducted using the pRRophetic package. Functional studies of TSPO in ESCA cells included bioinformatics analysis, quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR), Western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and cell proliferation assays. Results: Distinct cell cluster stemness potentials were identified using CytoTRACE. The TSCMS model consists of 18 tumor stemness-related genes. High-risk patients showed reduced immune and ESTIMATE scores, along with elevated tumor purity. Notable differences in immune infiltration and chemotherapy sensitivity were observed between risk groups.TSPO was found to be positively correlated with RNA expression-based stemness scores in various tumors, including ESCA. Its expression was diminished in ESCA cell lines and clinical tumor tissues, with low expression correlating with poor prognosis. Overexpression of TSPO inhibits the proliferation of ESCA cells and the formation of tumor clones. In a mouse model of esophageal carcinoma in situ, TSPO expression was significantly lower than in normal tissues. Conclusion: This study underscores the prognostic significance of the TSCMS model in ESCA, elucidates the immune landscape and treatment response, and identifies TSPO as a potential therapeutic target.

Keywords: Single-cell RNA, Gene signature, Prognostic model, esca, Tumor stem cell

Received: 19 Jun 2025; Accepted: 07 Aug 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Shi, Qiao, Lv, Fan, Yu, Hu, Wang and Sha. 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:
Longhao Wang, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
Beibei Sha, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China

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