{
  "id": 18026031,
  "title": "Researchers develop method for single-cell DNA methylation analysis",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/researchers-develop-method-for-single-cell-dna-methylation-analysis",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-11-03T22:00:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Phys.org",
    "slug": "phys-org",
    "url": "https://phys.org/news/2026-11-method-cell-dna-methylation-analysis.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Researchers have developed a standardized workflow for analyzing DNA methylation in individual cells, combining an improved laboratory procedure with an automated data analysis tool. Published in Nature Protocols, the study led by scientists from the Institute of Health and Medical Technology at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, aims to better understand the role of DNA methylation in cell development and disease. Traditional sequencing methods average methylation levels across many cells, potentially obscuring differences between individual cells. The new protocol simplifies several steps of the process by carrying out cell preparation, DNA digestion, and other reactions in the same microwell, reducing the need for repeated purification and minimizing DNA loss. Additionally, molecular barcodes label individual samples, allowing 24 single-cell samples to be pooled for processing, which decreases reagent use and enhances efficiency. The researchers also created an automated analysis tool, SingleCellMethPipe, which processes sequencing data, identifies methylation patterns, and checks data quality. The method was evaluated by analyzing 96 individual blood-forming stem and progenitor cells from a healthy donor and a patient with myelodysplastic syndrome, a blood disorder. Of these cells, 86 passed quality checks, yielding an 89.6% success rate. The analysis revealed DNA methylation differences between cell types and between the healthy and disease samples, demonstrating the potential of the protocol for studying cell development and the link between DNA methylation changes and blood disorders or cancer.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}