Hangzhou Huada Institute of Life Sciences and Southern University of Science and Technology have created a multimodal dataset for decoding animal development processes, generating a 3D single-cell spatiotemporal multi omics map of the entire developmental cycle of fruit flies. This provides a molecular level reference for biological development and is expected to lay the foundation for the study of developmental defects and related disease mechanisms. The relevant results were published on the 26th in the international academic journal Cell. Researchers introduce that animal development is a complex process of precise collaboration between genes and cells in the spatiotemporal dimension. Taking fruit flies as an example, their developmental process generally involves four stages: egg, larva, pupae, and adult. If this growth process is a meticulously arranged "stage play of life", then when and where each cell "appears" and how it becomes a specific cell type are all regulated by the gene "script". The research team, based on Huada's independently developed technology, sampled the key stages of fruit fly embryos, larvae, and pupae every 0.5 to 2 hours, generating over 3.8 million spatially resolved single-cell transcriptomes. They used the "Spatio" algorithm tool to reconstruct high-precision 3D models, accurately analyzing the spatial dynamics of tissue morphology and gene expression. By integrating data, a "differentiation trajectory map" of fruit fly embryo development was further constructed, and the key molecular mechanisms determining cell fate were analyzed. Research has found that cells from different germ layers differentiate along specific pathways, and transcription factors act as' directors', directing cells to play specific roles by activating or inhibiting genes. ”Wang Mingyue, co first author of the article and a special scientist at Hangzhou Huada Life Science Research Institute, said that research has found multiple previously unidentified transcription factors that may play key roles in the nervous, intestinal, and endocrine systems. Wang Mingyue stated that fruit flies share about 70% of disease-related genes with humans. Understanding their developmental process and gene regulation mechanisms can help us better explore important scientific issues such as life development, and provide reference for research in the field of human developmental diseases. (New Society)