Cellular barcoding: From developmental tracing to anti-tumor drug discovery
Yuqing Wang1, Xi Zhang2, Zheng Wang3
1Medical Center of Hematology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 40037, China; State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burn and Combined Injury, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 40037, China.
Cancer Letters
|June 19, 2023
Summary
Cellular barcoding offers new ways to trace cancer cell development and understand drug resistance. This review highlights key barcoding strategies for advancing cancer research and therapies.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Genomics
- Biotechnology
Background:
- Clonal evolution is crucial for understanding cancer progression, including initiation, relapse, and drug resistance.
- Single-cell and spatial transcriptomic technologies have advanced cancer research but face challenges in capturing dynamic phenotypic changes.
- Understanding abnormal cell trajectories from normal to malignant states remains a key challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and summarize the latest cellular barcoding strategies for lineage tracing.
- To provide insights into the characteristics, advantages, and limitations of various barcoding technologies.
- To guide the selection and improvement of cellular barcoding tools for cancer research.
Main Methods:
- Review of recent scientific literature on cellular barcoding techniques.
- Analysis of different barcoding mechanisms and their applications.
- Comparative assessment of existing cellular barcoding strategies.
Main Results:
- Cellular barcoding enables high-resolution lineage tracing in massive cell populations.
- Various barcoding strategies offer different mechanisms for tracking cell fate.
- These technologies provide new avenues for studying developmental trajectories and cancer progression.
Conclusions:
- Cellular barcoding technologies are vital for dissecting complex biological processes, particularly in cancer.
- Choosing the appropriate barcoding strategy is critical for successful application in cancer research.
- Further development of barcoding technologies will enhance our understanding of cancer and inform targeted therapies.
