Single-Cell Transcriptomics: Technical Advances, Applications and Challenges in Cancer Drug Discovery

With advancements in technology, single-cell RNA sequencing has emerged as a power-ful tool in cancer drug discovery. This technique enables the construction of gene expression profiles at the individual cell level, offering detailed insights into cellular heterogeneity and molecular path-ways involved in tumor development. It enables researchers to gain a deeper understanding of tumor heterogeneity. Researchers can study cell subpopulations and gene expression patterns. This under-standing helps in identifying potential drug targets. Additionally, it aids in predicting therapeutic responses. This high-resolution gene expression analysis provides a new perspective and oppor-tunity for cancer drug development, which is expected to accelerate the discovery and development process of new anti-cancer drugs. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the basic pro-cesses and developmental trajectory of single-cell RNA sequencing technology, with a particular emphasis on its applications in various aspects of cancer drug discovery. It also addresses the chal-lenges faced by single-cell RNA sequencing and potential future directions. This review aims to enhance readers' understanding of single-cell sequencing, inspire new ideas for oncology drug de-velopment, and support the translation of clinical research into practice, ultimately enabling physi-cians to design more precise and personalized treatment strategies.