Disease-Related Changes In The Cellular Landscape Of Human Intervertebral Disc

Purpose: Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is a complex and progressive process that begins early in adulthood and involves a cascade of changes on cellular, molecular and genetic levels. IDD pathophysiology and the exact mechanisms that lead to disc degeneration are yet to be discovered. In order to generate new therapeutics, the underlaying mechanisms of IDD need to be investigated and understood. Single cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) allows for analysis of differential gene expression profiling of cell subpopulations within a tissue and therefore gives access to the understanding of both normal and disease-related physiological processes that might lead to the identification of new treatment targets. For this study, we applied scRNA-seq using fresh NP and AF cells isolated from healthy, mildly and severely degenerated human IVDs to identify changes in cellular landscapes during disease progression.