Poster #059
Characterization of Human Alveolar Epithelial Cells
Mentors: Christine Zhou, Mark Krasnow, M.D., Ph.D.
Alveolar epithelial cells (AECs), consisting of alveolar type 1 (AT1), alveolar type 2 (AT2) cells, and rare AT2-signaling (AT2-s) cells which function as alveolar stem cells, play a crucial role in lung function. However, a comprehensive characterization of their molecular subtypes at single-cell resolution is limited. In this project, we first validated the molecular markers of these AECs, characterized by single-cell transcriptomics, in human lung tissues using in situ hybridization. Protein expression was evaluated using immunofluorescence to identify suitable surface markers for fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). Lastly, we aimed to develop a FACS-based strategy to purify AT1, AT2, and AT2-s cells from human lung tissues. Our work confirmed the existence of AT2-s cells in human alveoli, establishing a strategy to purify AEC subtypes. Taking this approach may enable various downstream in vitro applications for genetic perturbation and functional interrogation to deepen our understanding of human lung and stem cell biology.