Technology development

Each cell in the human body carries a wealth of information: the genes it expresses, the molecules it produces, the functions it performs, and, perhaps, the pathogens that it is infected with. We are developing new experimental and analytical tools to quantify each of these features in populations of single cells isolated in an array of subnanoliter-sized wells (nanowells). To increase the number of parameters that can be measured from single cells—and the throughput of these measurements—we are developing techniques to capture and detect transcripts from arrays of single cells, survey the molecular contents of single cells by mass spectrometry, and collect multiplexed measurements of cellular phenotypes and dynamic functions by imaging cytometry and microengraving. We are applying these new tools to address clinically motivated questions about the phenotypes of immune cells in mucosal tissues, the prevalence of HIV-infected cells in patient samples, and how immune cells recognize and attack diseased cells.

Technology Development image