Werner Kühlbrandt coinedthe phrase2014年的“分辨率革命”强调了电子冷冻微镜（Cryo-EM）的突破，该革命几乎允许几乎原子分辨率分子成像。在整个生命科学中，高分辨率方法的类似进展也发生了，并且肯定没有引起人们的注意，2014年的诺贝尔奖奖励超分辨率荧光显微镜以及2017年的Cryo-EM。这个聚光灯将BMC系列中发表的一些最近发表的文章汇总在一起，从单细胞基因组学到光片显微镜。
从多个细胞和组织的大量测序到单个细胞测序的过渡揭示了基因组的异质性，并且非常有效地用于绘制癌症的克隆进化。结合single-cell RNA-seq用生物信息学方法已被用来探索对治疗的抗药性。单细胞RNA-Seq是转录组学最受欢迎的工具之一，这部分是因为它可以应用于几乎所有可用参考基因组的样本。The software and tools to analyze these data have dramatically increased and the need for careful choice of thepre-processing pipelineis highlighted, as is the need for a method totransform scRNA-seq datasets across platforms.
High-throughput sequencing of trace genetic materials from environmental samples (known as eDNA) is revealing much greater species diversity than previously recorded by either microscopy or historical records. A recent article assessingdinoflagellate assemblages在两个不同的澳大利亚地点，测序比传统方法更好地检测稀有和较少的分类单元，并且通过测序检测到了所有通过显微镜鉴定的分类单元。海水样品的Edna metabarcoding有效检测shark and ray species, and compared with natural history collections and previous survey reports reveal a new degree of species diversity. Further examples of the progress in the application of eDNA (and eRNA) in ecology can be seen in thecollectioninBMC Ecology and Evolution.
Microscopy remains important, especially at a cellular level, particularly when combined with other digital or technological innovations. Visualization of tumor tissues in three dimensions throughvirtual realityoffers a new approach to teaching and studying pathology. Andlight-sheet microscopy, a fluorescence microscopy technique with good optical sectioning, was used to characterize embryonic mouse brains in a potential model of autism spectrum disorder. Using3D印刷微型板insertshas allowed long-term high resolution imaging of whole live brain organoids.
Although cryo-EM has stolen the limelight for advances in molecular structure, other methods continue to improve and particularly to be used to study molecular interactions in live organisms. For example, atomic force microscopy has revealed themucosal surface propertiesof a salmon fry without the need to remove the mucosal surface, andNanoBRET(bioluminescence resonance energy transfer) has been applied to the nematode C. elegans in vivo for the first time to detect protein-protein interactions.
We hope you enjoy these highlights and we encourage submissions across the breadth of基因组学,生态,cellular biology和molecular biology也plant biology,微生物学,生物技术和biomedical engineering.
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