Scientists have developed a new method that allows them to select individual cells from a population that is growing on the surface of a laboratory dish, and then study their contents using DNA and protein sequencing technologies to analyze the cell genome, transcriptome, and proteome. Developed by University of Toronto researchers, the approach is claimed to be the first to marry cell microscopy with -omics technologies, to link cells’ physical parameters that are visible by eye—such as appearance, the presence of surface markers, or cell-cell contacts—to their molecular makeup.
