A new workflow for whole-genome sequencing of single human cells

Unbiased amplification of the whole-genome amplification (WGA) of single cells is crucial to study cancer evolution and genetic heterogeneity, but is challenging due to the high complexity of the human genome. Here, we present a new workflow combining an efficient adapter-linker PCR-based WGA method with second-generation sequencing. This approach allows comparison of single cells at base pair resolution. Amplification recovered up to 74% of the human genome. Copy-number variants and loss of heterozygosity detected in single cell genomes showed concordance of up to 99% to pooled genomic DNA. Allele frequencies of mutations could be determined accurately due to an allele dropout rate of only 2%, clearly demonstrating the low bias of our PCR-based WGA approach. Sequencing with paired-end reads allowed genome-wide analysis of structural variants. By direct comparison to other WGA methods, we further endorse its suitability to analyze genetic heterogeneity.