Development of Single-Cell Transcriptomics and Its Application in COVID-19

• Published in: Viruses Vol. 14; no. 10; p. 2271
• Main Authors: Wang, Chaochao, Huyan, Ting, Zhou, Xiaojie, Zhang, Xuanshuo, Duan, Suyang, Gao, Shan, Jiang, Shanfeng, Li, Qi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.10.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Asymptomatic infection; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; DNA methylation; Genomics; Immune response; Methods; Respiratory distress syndrome; Review; RNA sequencing; SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; single-cell transcriptomics; Transcriptomics; Virus research; China; United States > US; California
• ISSN: 1999-4915; 1999-4915
• DOI: 10.3390/v14102271

Over the last three years, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-related health crisis has claimed over six million lives and caused USD 12 trillion losses to the global economy. SARS-CoV-2 continuously mutates and evolves with a high basic reproduction number (R0), resulting in a variety of clinical manifestations ranging from asymptomatic infection to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and even death. To gain a better understanding of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), it is critical to investigate the components that cause various clinical manifestations. Single-cell sequencing has substantial advantages in terms of identifying differentially expressed genes among individual cells, which can provide a better understanding of the various physiological and pathological processes. This article reviewed the use of single-cell transcriptomics in COVID-19 research, examined the immune response disparities generated by SARS-CoV-2, and offered insights regarding how to improve COVID-19 diagnosis and treatment plans.