Hypoxia tolerance in the Norrin-deficient retina and the chronically hypoxic brain studied at single-cell resolution

Jacob S. Heng, Amir Rattner, Genevieve L. Stein-O’Brien, Briana L. Winer, Bryan W. Jones, Hilary J. Vernon, Loyal A. Goff, Jeremy Nathans

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

The mammalian CNS is capable of tolerating chronic hypoxia, but cell type-specific responses to this stress have not been systematically characterized. In the Norrin KO (NdpKO) mouse, a model of familial exudative vitreoretinopathy (FEVR), developmental hypovascularization of the retina produces chronic hypoxia of inner nuclear-layer (INL) neurons and Muller glia. We used single-cell RNA sequencing, untargeted metabolomics, and metabolite labeling from 13C-glucose to compare WT and NdpKO retinas. In NdpKO retinas, we observe gene expression responses consistent with hypoxia in Muller glia and retinal neurons, and we find a metabolic shift that combines reduced flux through the TCA cycle with increased synthesis of serine, glycine, and glutathione. We also used single-cell RNA sequencing to compare the responses of individual cell types in NdpKO retinas with those in the hypoxic cerebral cortex of mice that were housed for 1 week in a reduced oxygen environment (7.5% oxygen). In the hypoxic cerebral cortex, glial transcriptome responses most closely resemble the response of Muller glia in the NdpKO retina. In both retina and brain, vascular endothelial cells activate a previously dormant tip cell gene expression program, which likely underlies the adaptive neoangiogenic response to chronic hypoxia. These analyses of retina and brain transcriptomes at single-cell resolution reveal both shared and cell type-specific changes in gene expression in response to chronic hypoxia, implying both shared and distinct cell type-specific physiologic responses.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)9103-9114
Number of pages12
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume116
Issue number18
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 30 2019

Keywords

  • Familial exudative vitreoretinopathy
  • Metabolomics
  • Norrie disease
  • Serine synthesis
  • Single-cell RNA-seq

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General

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