Nature Methods Publishes New Method to Improve Single-Cell RNA Sequencing Efficiency

Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) is a breakthrough technology that allows scientists to analyze the gene expression of individual cells in mixed populations

Capable of analyzing thousands of genes simultaneously, scRNA-seq captures the activity of all genes in a cell's genome, and has thus become the gold standard for defining cell states and phenotypes

At the same time, scRNA-seq is not only a tool for basic biological research; it is also widely used in medical and pharmacological research because it can identify which cells in a tissue are actively dividing, or which cells are responsive to specific drugs or therapies

Professor Bart Deplancke from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland, said: "These single-cell methods have changed our ability to interpret cellular properties

Dr Johannes Bues, a member of Deplancke's lab, added: "This creates inefficiencies and high costs when dealing with small numbers of samples, such as small amounts of tissue or biopsy samples, and people tend to solve problems by adding a large number of samples, creating confusion.

DisCo Solutions

A research team led by Deplancke has now developed a new method that allows scRNA-seq to efficiently process samples with low cell numbers

Unlike single-cell methods that typically rely on passive cell capture, DisCo uses machine vision to actively detect cells and capture them in oil droplets and microbeads

Their research shows that DisCo has the ability to precisely locate particles and cells, and control droplet sorting through machine vision and multilayer microfluidics

To further demonstrate Disco's unique capabilities, the researchers tested it on small chemosensory organs in fruit flies, as well as on individual gut crypts and organoids

The researchers used DisCo to analyze 31 intestinal organoids at various stages of development

"Our work demonstrates DisCo's unique ability to provide high-resolution snapshots of cellular heterogeneity in small individual tissues," said Deplancke

Original text retrieval

Bues, J.