Advancing Single-Cell and Spatial Biology
Tumor ecosystems are comprised of diverse cell types and states that profoundly influence tumor behavior and therapy responses. To allow investigators to interrogate cancerous lesions with unparalleled granularity, the Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Cancer Ecosystems Project works closely with the Single-cell Analytics Innovation Lab (SAIL) at MSK to expand single-cell and spatial biology capabilities and the advanced computational tools needed to interpret these data.
SAIL was established in 2017 as the first of several innovation labs that drive cutting-edge technology R&D at MSK. Led by Dana Pe’er (SAIL Scientific Director; Chair, Computational & Systems Biology Program at SKI) and Ronan Chaligné (SAIL Director), SAIL’s mission is to assimilate emerging technologies and robust analytical methods in the rapidly advancing fields of single-cell sequencing and imaging-based profiling technologies, catalyzing discovery efforts for over 70 research labs.
SAIL remains at the forefront of single-cell and spatial analytics through development of homegrown approaches and beta-testing new technologies with commercial partnerships. In support of current and future ecosystems-based science across MSK, SAIL has devoted efforts to optimize sample collection and processing from a variety of model systems and precious clinical specimens, and to establish protocols tailored to an expanding set of platforms. The computational arm of SAIL, led by Roshan Sharma, benchmarks new tools and generates pipelines to support the computational demands of these advanced technologies, and maintains training resources to empower researchers to analyze their own data.