Single-cell RNA sequencing: Technical advancements and biological applications

Cells are the basic building blocks of organisms and each cell is unique. Single-cell RNA sequencing has emerged as an indispensable tool to dissect the cellular heterogeneity and decompose tissues into cell types and/or cell states, which offers enormous potential for de novo discovery. Single-cell transcriptomic atlases provide unprecedented resolution to reveal complex cellular events and deepen our understanding of biological systems. In this review, we summarize and compare single-cell RNA sequencing technologies, that were developed since 2009, to facilitate a well-informed choice of method. The applications of these methods in different biological contexts are also discussed. We anticipate an ever-increasing role of single-cell RNA sequencing in biology with further improvement in providing spatial information and coupling to other cellular modalities. In the future, such biological findings will greatly benefit medical research.