Dissecting the tumor microenvironment in primary breast angiosarcoma: insights from single-cell RNA sequencing

作者：Peikai Ding, Shengbin Pei, Yi Zhai, Zheng Qu, Yazhe Yang, Xiaolong Feng, Qiang Liu, Xiangyu Wang, Wenxiang Zhang, Zhongzhao Wang, Xiangyi Kong, Jing Wang, Yi Fang · 发表于：Breast Cancer Research · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1186/s13058-025-02022-9 · 被引用次数：4 · 研究领域：Vascular Tumors and Angiosarcomas、Angiogenesis and VEGF in Cancer、Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics

Angiosarcoma, a rare and highly aggressive malignancy originating from vascular endothelial cells, is characterized by its rapid progression, high invasiveness, and poor prognosis. Due to the limited understanding of its tumor microenvironment (TME) and the absence of effective treatments, further research is essential to elucidate its pathogenic mechanisms and improve therapeutic strategies. This study aims to characterize the cellular heterogeneity and unique TME of primary breast angiosarcoma using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), to identify potential therapeutic targets and improve clinical outcomes. Tumor samples were obtained from a patient with bilateral primary breast angiosarcoma and two patients with invasive breast cancer. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) was conducted to capture the transcriptomic profiles of individual cells within the tumor samples. Following stringent quality control, a total of 31,771 cells were analyzed using comprehensive bioinformatics approaches. Cell populations were identified and classified into distinct cell types, and differential gene expression analysis was performed to explore key signaling pathways. Functional enrichment analysis was used to identify pathways related to tumor progression and immune evasion. Additionally, cell-cell communication networks were mapped to understand interactions within the TME, with a focus on pathways that may serve as therapeutic targets. The scRNA-seq analysis revealed significant dif...