Immune Cell Atlas of Environmental and Ancestral Diversity in Indonesia

Large-scale genomics datasets from non-European populations remain rare in human genomics, despite the fact that including non-European populations in efforts to characterize cellular diversity is fundamental to understanding human biology and disease risk. The degree to which genetic ancestry drives differences in cell type/state composition of tissues across populations remains unknown.

Therefore, collecting peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from historically excluded populations has the potential to yield insights on tissue composition and cell type/state changes associated with ancestry and environment. A more inclusive sampling of tissues will dramatically expand the existing definition of “healthy” immune states.

This team will generate tri-modal (gene expression, chromatin accessibility, and surface epitope) single-cell characterizations of PBMCs from 100 individuals of Papuan ancestry in Indonesia, across both rural and urban populations. The group will characterize immune cell types and states, resulting in a better understanding of how genetic architecture drives ancestry-specific changes in gene expression and cell type/state composition. Results will be integrated into existing networks, with a particular focus on the Asian Immune Diversity Atlas.