Question: What does the expression level of Malat1 in my gene expression data indicate?
Answer: Malat1 is frequently detected in poly-A captured RNA-seq data, independent of protocol. The level of detection appears to be cell type-specific.
It shows some inverse correlation with cell health. We have observed that dead/dying cells have higher expression of Malat1, see: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.07.14.603469v1
Low levels of MALAT1 have also been shown to correspond to empty droplets or cytosolic debris, see: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-024-11015-5
Products: Single Cell Gene Expression, Single Cell Immune Profiling