Single cell RNAseq provides a molecular and cellular cartography of changes to the human endometrium through the menstrual cycle

2018

SummaryIn a human menstrual cycle, the endometrium undergoes remodeling, shedding, and regeneration, all of which are driven by substantial gene expression changes in the underlying cellular hierarchy. Despite its importance in human fertility and regenerative biology, mechanistic understanding of this unique type of tissue homeostasis remains rudimentary. We characterized the transcriptomic transformation of human endometrium at single cell resolution, dissecting the multidimensional cellular heterogeneity of this tissue across the entire natural menstrual cycle. We profiled the behavior of 6 endometrial cell types, including a previously uncharacterized ciliated epithelial cell type, duri…