Live Droplet Single-Cell RNA Sequencing

Live Droplet single-cell RNA sequencing (Live D-seq) enables repeated, non-destructive transcriptome profiling of individual living cells over time, including tracking epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in A549 cells.

• Why it matters: Standard single-cell RNA-seq usually lyses cells and yields only terminal snapshots, which limits capturing dynamic trajectories and temporal changes within the same cell lineage.
• What they did: Live D-seq performs longitudinal intracellular sampling of live, barcoded cells using particle-templated emulsification and barcoded hydrogel beads, linking the same cell lineage across time points.
• The result: In A549 cells, Live D-seq tracks epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition dynamics over time and also demonstrates minimal cross-contamination in cross-species experiments and precise mapping between cellular and hydrogel bead barcodes.

AI summary of the abstract · may contain errors · not medical advice · read the paper.