te Pas, B. M. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2026

Cancer-myeloid cell invasive program in pediatric-type diffuse high-grade glioma

Pediatric-type diffuse high-grade gliomas (pHGGs) are aggressive, heterogeneous brain tumors shaped by intricate cancer-microenvironment cell-cell interactions. Here, we present an integrative multimodal pHGGmap, encompassing over 800,000 cells from 136 patients profiled across transcriptomic, epigenomic, and spatial modalities. Its analysis delineated robust cancer-myeloid cell programs that structured the tumor ecosystem and identified ten distinct cancer cell states, including previously unrecognized developmental and context-responsive programs. Among these, radial glial-like (RG-like) cells exhibited dual stress-adapted and infiltrative phenotypes. Tumor-associated monocyte-derived macrophages and resident microglia engaged in four distinct immunomodulatory programs aligned with specific cancer states. Three conserved multicellular communities were maintained across treatment, including a stable, spatially and transcriptionally linked RG-like/complement-macrophage niche, indicative of cellular co-option and adaptation to support invasion. Longitudinal profiling of a metastatic diffuse midline glioma case showed that RG-like cells predominate during dissemination and remain associated with complement-enriched macrophages, whose reprogramming restores immune activation. pHGGmap establishes a landmark resource for translational discovery. Graphical abstract O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=183 SRC="FIGDIR/small/701142v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (54K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@7ae699org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@b95b92org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@12adcf9org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1118703_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

cancer biology↗

bioRxiv2024

Single-cell multiomics of pediatric BM reveals age-dependent differences in lineage differentiation linked to stromal cell heterogeneity

Childhood is critical for hematopoietic development and the onset of hematologic diseases. To explore hematopoietic changes from infancy through adolescence, we generated a multi-modal single-cell atlas capturing mRNA and surface protein expression of 90.710 bone marrow (BM) cells. This includes hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells and mesenchymal stromal cells, from seven pediatric individuals and two young adults. We demonstrate that young pediatric BM is distinct from adolescents/young adults (AYA), shifting from B-lineage dominance in early childhood to myeloid and T-lineage bias in adolescence. We uncover two distinct lymphoid progenitors (LyPs) subsets regulating this shift: CD127-positive LyPs with B-lineage output, most abundant in early childhood, and CD127-negative LyPs with lymphoid and myeloid features, more common in AYAs. Age-related changes in stromal composition and signaling, mediated by IL-7 and TGF-{beta}1, correspond with this lineage shift. This study provides an in-depth resource for understanding healthy hematologic development and potential early-life perturbations underlying pediatric hematologic diseases.

immunology↗