On Friday, September 20, Jake Y. Chen, PhD, presented “Bioinformatics for Single-cell Analysis: A Review of Computational Biology Trends and Application Opportunities” to a full house in the Shelby Biomedical Sciences Building on UAB’s campus. Those who attended listened as Dr. Chen discussed single-cell RNA sequencing as a revolutionary technology to study the heterogeneity and clonal evolution of cells.

About Dr. Chen: Jake Y. Chen, PhD, Co-Director of CCTS Informatics; Associate Director and Chief Bioinformatics Officer of UAB Informatics Institute; CCTS Informatics Investigator; and Professor of Genetics, Computer Science, and Biomedical Engineering.

Presentation Abstract: Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) has emerged in recent years as a revolutionary technology to study the heterogeneity and clonal evolution of cells. Bioinformatics tools for carrying out bulk RNA-sequencing data have been inadequate to explore tens of thousands of cells. In this talk, I will review, in a literature survey style, the computational challenges of processing and analyzing scRNA-seq data, particularly the algorithmic ideas behind key scRNA-seq tools such as t-SNE/unsupervised clustering, single-cell transcriptomic analysis, single-cell developmental trajectory analysis, and integrative single-cell omic analysis. I will highlight several key applications published in cancer research as an example to showcase promising bioinformatics tool development and translational research opportunities throughout the CCTS Partner Network.

View Slide Deck HERE.

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