The era of 3D and spatial genomics

Abstract

Over a decade ago the advent of high-throughput chromosome conformation capture (Hi-C) sparked a new era of 3D genomics. Since then the number of methods for mapping the 3D genome has flourished, enabling an ever-increasing understanding of how DNA is packaged in the nucleus and how the spatiotemporal organization of the genome orchestrates its vital functions. More recently, the next generation of spatial genomics technologies has begun to reveal how genome sequence and 3D genome organization vary between cells in their tissue context. We summarize how the toolkit for charting genome topology has evolved over the past decade and discuss how new technological developments are advancing the field of 3D and spatial genomics.

Keywords: 3C methods; 3D genome organization; 3D genomics; highly multiplexed FISH; spatial genome variation; spatial genomics.