The journal Nature Methods has selected single cell sequencing as the “Method of the Year” for 2013. In an editorial published on December 30, 2013, editors of Nature Methods said, “Once considered a technical challenge reserved for a few specialized labs, single-cell transcriptome and genome sequencing is becoming robust and broadly accessible. Exciting insights from recent studies are revealing the potential to understand biology at the unitary resolution of life, and last year marked a turning point in the widespread adoption of these methods to address a variety of research questions. For these reasons, single-cell sequencing is our choice of Method of the Year for 2013.” The journal presents a host of commentaries on different aspects of this exciting methodology. The journal outlines basic workflows and considerations in a Primer and describes currently useful applications in a News Feature. One Commentary describes how the method can be used to determine recombination frequencies, while a second suggests that single-cell transcriptome sequencing will deepen our understanding of gene regulation. A third Commentary discusses directions that complementary technologies must take to understand single cells at the level of function. Finally, the journal provides a section on Methods to Watch as we head into the future. This section can be found in the Method of the Year packet of information.Login Or Register To Read Full Story