ArticleBiomarker research2026
Spatial transcriptomics reveals compartment-specific cytotoxic T cell crosstalk with AT2 and goblet cells in advanced COPD.
Article in Biomarker research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundChronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by chronic inflammation and structural remodelling across different anatomical structures of the lung, including airways, parenchyma, and pulmonary vessels. However, compartment specific changes in immune cell composition and their communications with underlying structural cells remains incompletely defined.
methodsOur study sought to assess the spatially resolved cellular organization of healthy and advanced end-stage COPD lungs using 10X Visium spatial transcriptomics. Non-negative matrix factorization was applied to identify transcriptional programs within spatially distinct areas. Data was validated through an integrative multi-modal approach, including flow cytometry, multiplex immunofluorescence, open access GeoMx Nanostring spatial transcriptomics and scRNA-seq datasets, and proof of concept in vitro co-culture experiments.
resultsSpatial mapping of advanced COPD lungs revealed compartment-specific immune and tissue remodelling programs. In the COPD parenchyma, molecular and immune signatures delineated macrophage-rich, remodelling-stress, and humoral B cell immune niches. Airway niches shifted from club cell/innate immunity in controls to goblet cell/adaptive immunity in COPD. Notably cytotoxic T cells colocalised with alveolar type 2 cells within the parenchymal remodelling-stress niche and goblet cells in COPD airways; predicted ligand-receptor interactions implicated these T cells in parenchymal cytotoxic injury and mucus-associated airway remodelling.
conclusionsOur findings delineate compartment-specific cellular microenvironments and interaction networks that may orchestrate tissue remodelling in COPD. This work advances our understanding of immune-driven pathogenesis and pinpoints the cytotoxic T-cell axis as a candidate for targeted therapeutic strategies.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.