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Applications and advances of single-cell omics technologies in hematopoietic stem cell research

ZHANG Yi-Yang^1,2,3, DONG Fang^1,3,*

¹Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Tianjin 300020, China；²Tianjin Institutes of Health Science, Tianjin 301600, China；³PUMC Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Tianjin 300020, China

Abstract

Stem cells, as a class of cells possessing self-renewal and multipotent differentiation potential, exhibit functional diversity influenced by both intrinsic regulatory networks and external microenvironments. Traditional population-level research methods struggle to precisely resolve cellular heterogeneity, thereby limiting in-depth understanding of stem cell biology. Recent breakthroughs in single-cell analysis technologies have opened new avenues for detailed observation at the cellular level. This review focuses on hematopoietic stem cells as a primary example, summarizing the principles and advancements of single-cell transcriptomics, epigenomics, proteomics, metabolomics, spatialomics, and multi-omics integration analysis. It explores their applications in revealing stem cell heterogeneity, differentiation pathways, and state regulation mechanisms, while also outlining future directions for single-cell technologies in stem cell research.

Key words: single-cell technology; stem cells; hematopoietic stem cells; heterogeneity; multi-omics integration

Received: 　　Accepted:

Corresponding author: 董芳　　E-mail:

DOI: 10.13294/j.aps.2026.0061

Citing This Article：

ZHANG Yi-Yang, DONG Fang. Applications and advances of single-cell omics technologies in hematopoietic stem cell research. Acta Physiol Sin 2026; 78 (4): 741-761 (in Chinese with English abstract).