Good news!
However, nature is woke too (see second figure below)!
"In 2016, biologists Aviv Regev and Sarah Teichmann launched an initiative with around 100 other scientists. They set themselves the monumentally ambitious goal of cataloguing every cell type in the human body, from development to old age. That amounts to mapping the body’s estimated 37.2 trillion cells. ..."
"... This week, that initiative, the Human Cell Atlas (HCA), is releasing a collection of studies that represent a significant step towards assembling a first draft atlas. Thanks to some 9,000 donors around the world, the HCA teams now have data on around 62 million human cells, categorized according to 18 biological networks — including maps of cells in the nervous system, lungs, heart, gut and immune system. ..."
From the perspective abstract:
"With the convergence in exciting advances in molecular and spatial profiling methods and new computational approaches leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML), the construction of cell atlases is progressing from data collection to atlas integration and beyond. Here, we explore five ways in which cell atlases, including the Human Cell Atlas, are already revealing valuable biological insights, and how they are poised to provide even greater benefits in the coming years. In particular, we discuss cell atlases as censuses of cells; as 3D maps of cells in the body, across modalities and scales; as maps connecting genotype causes to phenotype effects; as 4D maps of development; and, ultimately, as foundation models of biology unifying all these aspects and helping to transform medicine."
A ‘Wikipedia for cells’: researchers get an updated look at the Human Cell Atlas, and it’s remarkable "Coming less than a decade after its launch, the studies emerging from the global project are a major achievement. Funders should sign up for the long haul."
The Human Cell Atlas: towards a first draft atlas "In a collection of research articles and related content, the Human Cell Atlas consortium presents tools, data and ideas towards the generation of their first draft atlas of cells in the human body."
The Human Cell Atlas from a cell census to a unified foundation model (no public access)
The 18 Biological Networks
The HCA data portal currently hosts data from approximately 62 million cells collected from around 9,100 donors. To facilitate data integration, the consortium is constructing 18 HCA Biological Network Atlases, as shown in this diagram. Each network consolidates all available HCA data related to individual tissues or organs. To date, draft atlases from three networks — lung, nervous system and eye — have been assembled by HCA researchers collaborating globally with other consortia. The papers in this collection represent significant progress in assembling these Biological Network Atlases.
Cringe!!!
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