Biology subjects

Bertilsson, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Bertilsson, F..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Pubertal maturation and chemotherapy-associated disruption of the pediatric ovary revealed by multimodal single-cell profiling

Ovarian tissue cryopreservation enables fertility preservation in females undergoing gonadotoxic therapies, restoring fertility in adults. Although offered even before puberty, the childhood ovary and its vulnerability to therapy remain poorly characterized. Here, ovarian tissue from 16 patients undergoing fertility preservation (aged 1-16 years) and 11 adult controls (aged 22-32 years) was analyzed using single-cell RNA sequencing, spatial transcriptomics, and multiplex immunostaining. In chemotherapy-naive samples, 13 somatic cell populations underwent extracellular matrix remodeling, vascular, neural, and stromal maturation during puberty, whereas changes in germline related to chromatin remodeling. Spatial transcriptomics resolved 23 clusters across, revealing distinct tissue organization and follicular niche composition between children and adults. Chemotherapy exposure depleted perifollicular and vascular cells, suppressed intercellular signaling, and dysregulated over half of puberty-associated genes, converging on stress responses and extracellular matrix remodeling, with SEPTIN7 as a potential biomarker. These findings uncover critical developmental vulnerabilities of the pediatric ovary relevant to fertility preservation.

developmental biology↗

bioRxiv2026

Regional epithelial architecture and spatial distribution of T and B lymphocytes in the human fallopian tube

The human fallopian tube plays a critical role in reproduction, yet its structural organization and immune landscape remain incompletely characterized. Here, we analyzed tissue from women of reproductive age across three anatomical regions (isthmus, ampulla, and fimbriae) throughout the menstrual cycle. By using antibody-based imaging together with automated image analysis, the epithelial thickness and spatial distribution of T and B lymphocytes was assessed. No significant differences in epithelial thickness were observed between proliferative and secretory phases. However, significant regional variation was identified, with the epithelium thickest in the isthmus and thinnest in the ampulla. Both CD8A+ T lymphocytes and CD20+ B lymphocytes were present throughout the fallopian tube, with their abundance strongly correlated across patients. Spatial analysis further revealed that both lymphocyte populations were preferentially localized to the mucosal compartment adjacent to the lumen, and intraepithelial B lymphocytes were consistently observed. Together, these findings provide new insight into epithelial organization and immune cell distribution in the human fallopian tube, highlighting the complexity of the tubal immune microenvironment and its potential relevance for reproductive biology.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2025

A high-resolution subcellular map of proteins in ciliated cells

Motile cilia are complex structures regulated by thousands of genes, essential for various physiological functions like respiration and reproduction. Their dysfunction can result in severe conditions like primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), highlighting the need for a deeper molecular understanding of their specific ciliary compartments. Interestingly, ciliated cells harbor multiple proteins with limited evidence on biological function, as defined by Functional Evidence (FE) scores, a grading system developed by the Human Proteome Project (HPP). Building upon the stringent antibody validation pipeline of the Human Protein Atlas (HPA) project, we developed a high-throughput workflow that combines a novel multiplex immunohistochemistry protocol with image analysis to investigate protein expression and subcellular localization in motile ciliated cells across five human tissues: nasopharynx, bronchus, fallopian tube, endometrium, and cervix. We spatially mapped >180 proteins, out of which 73% have FE scores 2-5, suggesting that further evidence is needed to establish these proteins biological function. Notably, expression patterns varied between tissues, suggesting that motile cilia proteins are not universally expressed across the different epithelia. Our pipeline constitutes a promising resource for comprehensive mapping of the motile cilia proteome, and a first step towards identifying cilia proteins for functional studies to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying ciliopathies.

cell biology↗