Solid tumours comprise many different cell types organized in spatially structured arrangements, with substantial intratumour and intertumour heterogeneity. Advances in spatial profiling technologies over the past decade hold promise to capture the complexity of these cellular architectures to build a holistic view of the intricate molecular mechanisms that shape the tumour ecosystem. Some of these mechanisms act at the cellular scale and are controlled by cell-autonomous programmes or communication between nearby cells, whereas other mechanisms result from coordinated efforts between large networks of cells and extracellular molecules organized into tissues and organs. In this Review we provide insights into the application of single-cell and spatial profiling tools, with a focus on spatially resolved transcriptomic tools developed to understand the cellular architecture of the tumour microenvironment and identify opportunities to use them to improve clinical management of cancers.

实体瘤包含许多以空间结构排列的不同细胞类型，具有显着的肿瘤内和肿瘤间异质性。过去十年空间分析技术的进步有望捕捉这些细胞结构的复杂性，从而建立塑造肿瘤生态系统的复杂分子机制的整体视图。其中一些机制在细胞尺度上起作用，并由细胞自主程序或附近细胞之间的通信控制，而其他机制则来自大型细胞网络和组织成组织和器官的细胞外分子之间的协调努力。在这篇综述中，我们提供了对单细胞和空间分析工具应用的见解，重点是空间分辨转录组学工具，这些工具是为了了解肿瘤微环境的细胞结构而开发的，并确定使用它们来改善癌症临床管理的机会。