When small cell differences have far-reaching implications
In certain tissues or organs, cells may appear very similar or even identical. But at the molecular level, these cells can have small differences that lead to wide variations in their function. Alex K. Shalek, a professor of chemistry at MIT, loves the challenge of uncovering those tiny differences. In his lab, the researchers develop and deploy technologies such as single-cell RNA sequencing, which allows them to analyze differences in gene expression patterns and allows them to know how each cell contributes to tissue function. “Single-cell RNA sequencing is a very powerful way to check what a cell is doing at any given moment. By looking at the associations among the different mRNAs that cells express, we can identify very important tissue features — such as what cells are present and what they are trying to do,” said Shalek, who is also a core member of the MIT Institute for Medical Engineering and Science. and an extramural member of the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Re