Geology

Transcriptome

Organic chemistry

Image resolution

Biology

Gene

Operating system

Gene expression

Gene expression profiling

Artificial intelligence

Chemistry

Profiling (computer programming)

In situ

Computer science

Computational biology

High resolution

Genetics

Remote sensing

Nature Methods

Spatial and molecular characteristics determine tissue function, yet high-resolution methods to capture both concurrently are lacking. Here, we developed high-definition spatial transcriptomics, which captures RNA from histological tissue sections on a dense, spatially barcoded bead array. Each experiment recovers several hundred thousand transcript-coupled spatial barcodes at 2-μm resolution, as demonstrated in mouse brain and primary breast cancer. This opens the way to high-resolution spatial analysis of cells and tissues. A dense, spatially barcoded bead array captures RNA from histological tissue sections for spatially resolved gene expression analysis.

High-definition spatial transcriptomics for in situ tissue profiling