10X Chromium Single-cell RNA sequencing of the female reproductive tract in young, pregnant and aged C57BL/6 mice
The aim of the study was to assess the cellular composition and transcriptional changes at single-cell resolution of the female reproductive tract across the four stages of estrus cycle in young adult mice (ovary, oviduct, uterus, cervix and vagina, with spleen as a comparison) and compared this with similar analyses of decidualization (uterus) and ageing (ovary, oviduct, uterus, cervix, vagina and spleen). Vaginal smears were used to stage the estrus cycle in young mice. To collect the decidualized uteri mice were mated and uterine tissue was collected from pregnant mice at day 5.5 after mating. Tissues of aged mice were collected at the age of 18 months. All tissues were collected and digested using a collagenase and trypsin protocol to obtain single cell suspension. Libraries were prepared using the 10x scRNA-seq protocol.