Complete Guide to Understanding Single-Cell RNA-Seq

From Active Motif By Anne-Sophie Ay-Berthomieu, Ph.D.

March 4, 2021

Table of Contents:

• What is RNA-Seq?
• Development of Bulk and Single-Cell RNA-Seq Assays
• How Do Single-Cell RNA-Seq Protocols Work?
• Advantages & Limitations of scRNA-Seq Assays
• Discoveries Enabled by scRNA-Seq
• The Future of Single-Cell RNA-Seq Assays
• Summary

With the rise of Next-Generation-Sequencing (NGS), omics analysis has become mainstream. In particular, more and more researchers include transcriptomics data in their publications. RNA-Seq allows the identification of all the transcripts in a sample, replacing other methods such as quantitative RT-PCR and microarrays. Bulk RNA-Seq is very informative and can lead to the identification of the molecular mechanisms underlying physiological or pathological processes.

However, for researchers working with heterogeneous samples, including biopsies or animal organs, bulk RNA-Seq can be limited. In order to overcome this limitation, single-cell technologies have emerged and have been adapted to different omic protocols such as single cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-Seq).

Here, we will tell you the story of scRNA-Seq, highlighting the benefits and the limitations of such technology and explain the protocols.