Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics approaches of cardiovascular development and disease.

Recent advancements in the resolution and throughput of single-cell analyses, including single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), have achieved significant progress in biomedical research in the last decade. These techniques have been used to understand cellular heterogeneity by identifying many rare and novel cell types and characterizing subpopulations of cells that make up organs and tissues. Analysis across various datasets can elucidate temporal patterning in gene expression and developmental cues and is also employed to examine the response of cells to acute injury, damage, or disruption. Specifically, scRNA-seq and spatially resolved transcriptomics have been used to describe the identity of novel or rare cell subpopulations and transcriptional variations that are related to normal and pathological conditions in mammalian models and human tissues. These applications have critically contributed to advance basic cardiovascular research in the past decade by identifying novel cell types implicated in development and disease. In this review, we describe current scRNA-seq technologies and how current scRNA-seq and spatial transcriptomic (ST) techniques have advanced our understanding of cardiovascular development and disease. [BMB Reports 2020; 53(8): 393-399].