3D whole-organ gene activity mapping with a new fluorescent imaging method
Whole organ transcriptome reconstruction by dimensionality reduced fluorescent in situ hybridization
This project will create a new lab method to map where thousands of genes are active across whole organs in three dimensions to help researchers understand tissues and disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California Los Angeles NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Los Angeles, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11298977 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
As a patient, this project is developing a new way to map where thousands of genes are active across an entire organ in three dimensions. Current gene-mapping techniques look at very thin tissue slices and can miss how cells are organized across the whole organ. The team will use a new fluorescent labeling approach called dredFISH that measures combined signals from many genes and then matches those signals to single-cell gene profiles to infer individual cells' activity. The goal is to produce detailed 3D maps of cellular states that researchers can use to study how diseases change organ structure and function.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates would be people willing to provide surgical or biopsy tissue, or organ donors, so researchers can apply the new 3D mapping to real human samples.
Not a fit: People who cannot or do not want to provide tissue samples, or whose health issues do not involve the organs being mapped, are unlikely to directly benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help researchers locate where disease-related genes are active across whole organs and point to new diagnostic markers or treatment targets.
How similar studies have performed: Related single-molecule FISH methods (for example MERFISH and seqFISH+) have successfully mapped gene activity in thin sections, but applying a method like dredFISH to whole-organ 3D mapping is a novel advance.
Where this research is happening
Los Angeles, United States
- University of California Los Angeles — Los Angeles, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wollman, Roy — University of California Los Angeles
- Study coordinator: Wollman, Roy
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.