A new era for plant science: spatial single-cell transcriptomics

To achieve a complete understanding of how organisms function, there is a need to study their fundamental unit, the cell, in its spatial context. In recent years, we have seen fast-paced technological progress to study the transcriptional content of single cells and their spatial relationships. This review highlights modern advancements in single-cell RNA-sequencing, provides an overview of the technologies that led the plant field toward spatial transcriptomics, and describes the available spatial transcriptomics approaches providing examples of their application to plant tissues. In addition, it discusses the integration of these methods to study plant tissues. Taken together, we propose a central role of spatial transcriptomics approaches in plant science.

Automated summary

This article discusses the need to study organisms from the fundamental unit of cells in their spatial context and the recent technological advancements in single-cell RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomics in plant science. It emphasizes the central role of spatial transcriptomics approaches in studying plant tissues.