SMARTdb: An Integrated Database for Exploring Single-cell Multi-omics Data of Reproductive Medicine

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Biology
• Genomics
• Epigenetics

Background:

• Single-cell multi-omics sequencing is advancing reproductive research, but data accessibility remains a challenge for experimental scientists.
• A centralized, user-friendly platform is needed to explore the vast and growing single-cell multi-omics datasets in reproduction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce the single-cell multi-omics atlas of reproduction (SMARTdb), an integrated platform for exploring reproductive development, aging, and disease.
• To provide a comprehensive resource covering multi-omics, multi-species, and multi-stage reproductive data.

Main Methods:

• Curated and analyzed over 2.0 million single-cell transcriptomic and epigenomic profiles from 6 species.
• Developed a user-friendly platform with functionalities including gene expression querying, custom plotting, and epigenome visualization.

Main Results:

• Identified conserved male germ cell-specific expression patterns for RPL39L and RPL10L between humans and model organisms.
• Found that DNA hypomethylation and open chromatin may cooperatively regulate RPL39L expression in both male and female germ cells.

Conclusions:

• SMARTdb offers a powerful tool for data mining and generating novel insights into reproductive biology.
• The platform facilitates the exploration of molecular dynamics underlying reproductive development, aging, and disease.