Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42443752›Full record

ArticleCellular & molecular biology letters2026

Single-cell and spatial transcriptomic analysis reveal distinct tumor microenvironment signatures in primary and recurrent hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

Zhimou Cai, Jinhong Zhang, Yaodong Ding, Zhenglin Xu, Zhi Liu, Zhiwei Qiang, Zhaoyue Lu, Lin Chen, Weiping Wen, Wenbin Lei

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In one paragraph

Article in Cellular & molecular biology letters, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Zhimou Cai *Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China. caizhm5@mail.sysu.edu.cn.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4250-8166
Jinhong Zhang *Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.
Yaodong Ding *Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.
Zhenglin Xu *Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.
Zhi LiuDepartment of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.
Zhiwei QiangDepartment of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.
Zhaoyue LuDepartment of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.
Lin ChenDepartment of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.
Weiping WenDepartment of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China. wenwp@mail.sysu.edu.cn.
Wenbin LeiDepartment of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China. leiwb@mail.sysu.edu.cn.

Funding

China Postdoctoral Science Foundation 2024M763797National Natural Science Foundation of China 82404009Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province 2023A1515011046Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province 2026A1515012848Science and Technology Program of Guangzhou 2024A04J4697
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HPSCC) is a rare, highly aggressive malignancy, with recurrence playing a pivotal role in treatment failure and cancer-related mortality. The tumor microenvironment (TME) characteristics and molecular mechanisms driving recurrence in HPSCC remain poorly defined. MATERIALS AND

methodsPrimary HPSCC (P-HPSCC) samples (n = 6) and recurrent HPSCC (R-HPSCC) samples (n = 3) were analyzed. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and spatial transcriptomics were employed to dissect the cellular composition and molecular characteristics of the TME. Key regulatory networks were identified through gene expression analysis, pathway enrichment, and intercellular communication profiling. Functional validation experiments were performed to confirm the biological relevance of the pathways identified.

resultsScRNA-seq analysis revealed that malignant epithelial cells (maEpCs) in recurrent tumors exhibited increased stemness, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and immune evasion programs. Mechanistically, IGF2BP2 was selectively upregulated in R-HPSCC and functioned as an m

conclusionsThis study identifies recurrence-associated cellular and molecular features in HPSCC. Recurrent tumors exhibited maEpC reprogramming via IGF2BP2-mediated activation of TGF-β signaling, coupled with FN1-dependent stromal activation and immune evasion marked by myeloid immunosuppressive remodeling and CD8

Indexed as

Carcinoma, Squamous CellHypopharyngeal NeoplasmsNeoplasm Recurrence, LocalSingle-Cell AnalysisTumor MicroenvironmentEpithelial-Mesenchymal TransitionGene Expression ProfilingGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansRNA-Binding ProteinsSingle-Cell Gene Expression AnalysisSpatial TranscriptomicsRNA-Binding ProteinsHypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaImmune remodelingSingle-cell RNA sequencingSpatial transcriptomicsTumor microenvironmentTumor recurrence

Identifiers

PMID42443752
PMCPMC13587476

What Socratic holds

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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 Socratic graph.