12:00 – 12:30 Paula Doria. Molecular Mechanisms of Placental Invasion Lab

Exploring the role of the tumour suppressor BAP1 in regulating human placentation

The placenta is a complex organ essential for nutrient and oxygen exchange between the mother and the developing fetus. Thus, the placenta arbitrates the outcomes of fetal growth and development. In fact, abnormal placentation is considered an underlying cause of various pregnancy complications, including miscarriage, preeclampsia, and intrauterine growth restriction. Recently, we have reported how the tumour suppressor BRCA1-associated protein 1 (BAP1), a commonly mutated gene in cancer, is modulated during mouse placentation to establish the definitive feto-maternal interface. Here, we hypothesize that the molecular mechanism by which BAP1 regulates placentation is conserved between mice and humans. How does a genetic modification in BAP1 impact on human placentation? What are the potential implications for pregnancy disorders?

Please come over and help us to shed light on the unknown human placentation process as we celebrate my first year as a PhD student.

12:30 – 13:00 Javier González Fernández. Fundación Carlos Simón

Single-Cell Analysis of Endometrial Cell Lineages identifies Endothelial and Epithelial Progenitors

In our study, we investigated the endothelial and epithelial progenitor cells in the human endometrium by analyzing a total of 163,879 cells (post-filtering) from 52 healthy women throughout the menstrual cycle. We identified eight different cell types, and we observed two distinct macrostates – endothelium and stromal with perivascular, and epithelium with ciliated epithelium, using CellRank machine learning method.
Focusing on the first macrostate, we identified potential paths that endothelial progenitor cells take during maturation. We discovered the specific expression of certain genes in endothelial cells during the early proliferative phase. Also, we were able to isolate potential progenitor cluster cells through FACS from endometrial biopsies and culture them using a sprouting experiment to test their capacity to generate blood vessels.
Regarding the epithelium macrostate, we determined gene-specific developmental cells in the epithelial cell population. We isolated the epithelial population identified as potential progenitor cells using FACS and cultured them as organoids, treating them with steroid hormones, and analyzing the resultant shifts in the cellular composition through single-cell RNA sequencing.