The single-cell atlas of cultured human endometrial stromal cells.

objectiveTo systematically analyze the cell composition and transcriptome of primary human endometrial stromal cells (HESCs) and transformed human endometrial stromal cells (THESCs).

designThe primary HESCs from 3 different donors and 1 immortalized THESC were collected from the human endometrium at the midsecretory phase and cultured in vitro.

settingAcademic research laboratory. PATIENT(S): None. INTERVENTION(S): None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Single-cell ribonucleic acid sequencing analysis. RESULT(S): We found the individual differences among the primary HESCs and bigger changes between the primary HESCs and THESCs. Cell clustering with or without integration identified cell clusters belonging to mature, proliferative, and active fibroblasts that were conserved across all samples at different stages of the cell cycles with intensive cell communication signals. All primary HESCs and THESCs can be correlated with some subpopulations of fibroblasts in the human endometrium. CONCLUSION(S): Our study indicated that the primary HESCs and THESCs displayed conserved cell characters and distinct cell clusters. Mature, proliferative, and active fibroblasts at different stages or cell cycles were detected across all samples and presented with a complex cell communication network. The cultured HESCs and THESCs retained the features of some subpopulations within the human endometrium.