Single-Cell Transcriptomic and Chromatin Accessibility Atlas of Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells Reveal the Immune Cell Heterogeneity of Pigs

Abstract Pig is a widely-used for biomedical studies and xenotransplantation, yet its immune cell heterogeneity remains poorly characterized. Here, we generate single-cell transcriptomes and chromatin maps for the Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells (PBMCs) of two porcine breeds with distinct immune traits. Dozens of cell types are annotated, with γδ T lymphocytes making up one-fifth of all PBMCs. Both the cellular composition and immune gene expression abundance underlie the immune trait variations across breeds. Transcription factors associated with each immune lineage are also identified, including many known to be critical for T, B and myeloid development. Furthermore, most cell populations and the corresponding markers match between pigs and human. Our study would be valuable not only for better understanding of the immune heterogeneity and immune traits in pigs, but also for identifying novel immune cell subsets, markers and regulators to facilitate future biomedical studies about human immunology and organ xenotransplantation.