The evolution of lymphoma is a multifactorial process that leads to unavoidable lymphoma heterogeneity in the form of genetic mutations, chromosomal translocations and other variations. Multi‑omics analyses based on single‑cell assays can reveal and characterize tumor components, enabling us to determine the timing of mutations and to profile disease progression. Increasing numbers of studies are using single‑cell transcriptomics to unravel the mechanisms of lymphoma evolution, drug resistance and therapeutic approaches. Various single‑cell multi‑omics measurements involving genomics, transcriptomics and epigenomics have improved knowledge of the complex lymphatic system and made it possible to obtain individualized and precise tumor biological characteristics, which cannot be accessed from bulk cell analysis, and this can facilitate individualized treatment. In the present review, the advances in multi‑omics analysis based on single‑cell assays of lymphoma specimens were systematically discussed, including the sequencing of the single‑cell from genomic and transcriptomic perspectives, the landscape of the lymphoma microenvironment, the development of single‑cell histology biomarkers, the identification of lymphoma origin and evolution, as well as the current challenges and future prospects of single‑cell multi‑omics. The authors' insights may contribute to the exploration of novel lymphoma biomarkers and the discovery of efficient treatment combinations that target immunological checkpoints and underlying molecular mechanisms.
Keywords: biomarker; drug resistance; lymphoma; single‑cell RNA sequencing; single‑cell multi‑omics.