Characterizing somatic mutations in immune and epithelial cell communication in ulcerative colitis (A09*)

• Subject Area: Gastroenterology ; Immunology
• Term: since 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 375876048

Recent work has just begun to implicate somatic mutations (SM) as molecular drivers in autoimmune diseases, however how they form and contribute to ulcerative colitis (UC) remains unknown. We will harness novel single-cell genomic technologies to measure SM in primary epithelial and immune cells from UC patients to characterize their mutational landscapes in a cell-by-cell manner, and explore epigenetic and molecular consequences in a clone-by-clone manner. By characterizing the full spectrum of SM in these patients, we aim to identify specific cell signatures that contribute to UC and pathologic immune-epithelial communication.

• DFG Programme: CRC/Transregios
• Subproject of: TRR 241: Immune-Epithelial Communication in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
• Applicant Institution: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
• Project Heads: Dr. Ashley Sanders; Dr. Carl Weidinger