Short tandem repeats (STRs), or microsatellites, are highly mutable genomic elements that modulate gene regulations and are implicated in a range of human diseases. However, detecting mosaic STR mutations at single-cell resolution remains challenging due to both technical and biological complexities. To address this, we developed BayesMonSTR, a robust algorithm that enables accurate detection of mosaic STR mutations. Using this tool in single-cell analysis of human tissues, we reveal an accumulation of longer mosaic STR insertions and deletions (indels) in aging mitotic and post-mitotic cells. Strikingly, prefrontal cortex (PFC) neurons accumulate a higher burden of STR mutations than B cells or lung epithelium, with aged neurons exhibiting a particularly pronounced increase in longer STR deletions. These mutations are enriched at transcription start sites (TSSs) and active enhancers of highly expressed genes. Our work establishes a foundation for genome-wide, hypothesis-free discovery of disease-associated mosaic STR mutations and reveals a previously unexplored landscape of mosaic STR variation in development and aging.
Unravelling genome-wide mosaic microsatellite mutations at single-cell resolution
Chunyi Wang,Wenxuan Fan,Weixiang Wang,Yonghe Xia,Jinhong Lu,Xiaoyu Ma,Jichuan Yu,Yunchao Zheng,Yan Luo,Wenlong Li,Qing Yang,Meizhen Lin,Huan Liu,Yangning Lan,Chengyu Li,Xiaodong Liu,Danyang He,Shang Cai,Xiuyan Yu,Dan Zhou,M. Kellis,Xushen Xiong,Qi Xie,Yanmei Dou
Published 2026 in bioRxiv
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2026
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bioRxiv
- Publication date
2026-02-06
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Biology, Medicine
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