The 2024 Spatiotemporal Omics Consortium (STOC) conference opened on 8 July in Singapore at Nanyang Technological University, with over 270 scientists and industrial experts from 163 institutes in 40 countries and regions participating in the conference online and offline.
Over two days, the conference enabled scientists to share and discuss the latest achievements and breakthroughs in the field of spatiotemporal omics, and to discuss the ongoing development directions of the spatiotemporal omics alliance. Key topics discussed during the conference included Technology/Algorithm/Data Integration, Neurobiology and Developmental Biology, Cancer and Disease, and other key areas where spatiotemporal omics is achieving significant advancements in life sciences.
Group picture of all attendees.(Courtesy of STOC GM)
Xu Xun, Director of BGI-Research, the scientific leader of STOC and member of the STOC Organizing Committee, and Weibin Liu, STOC Chief Organizer and Head of Executive Office, Vice President of BGI, delivered the opening speeches. Li Yuxiang, Director of the Institute of Biointelligence Technology and Chief Scientist of Biointelligence at BGI-Research; Chen Ao, Director of the Institute of Biochemical Technology and Chief Scientist of Spatial Omics at BGI-Research; Liu Longqi, Chief Scientist of Single-Cell Omics at BGI-Research; and Xia Keke, Principal Scientist of the Institute of Digital Earth at BGI-Research, presented reports on their scientific research achievements and introduced the latest development of STOC. Wang Jian, Chairman and Co-Founder of BGI Group, attended the event and interacted with the scientists.
Wang Jian, Chairman and Co-founder of BGI Group, attended the event. (Courtesy of STOC GM)
On July 8, in the opening speech, Liu Weibin welcomed and thanked all the international experts and scholars for their presence. He noted the historical context of humankind’s desire to understand the workings of life: “Today, as more scientists globally are empowered to add spatial and temporal contexts to their cellular genomics research, we are on the cusp of making yet another quantum leap in that quest.” In a call to action, he added: “We must be ambitious, and we need the joint effort of the world’s best scientists, engineers, mathematicians, technologies and infrastructural solutions. Only a scientifically-driven mission, pursued globally, inclusively and equitably, may galvanize the resources and talent required”.
Liu Weibin delivers an opening remark.(Courtesy of STOC GM)
In his opening remark, Xu Xun introduced the tasks and challenges of each working group within the STOC and elaborated on the goals of the conference. He pointed out that STOC is a neutral, open, and non-profit organization, upholding the values of standardization, pioneering, innovation, and social responsibility. Xu emphasized that standardization is crucial for the comparability, reproducibility, and referability of scientific research. He noted that many studies in spatial omics are pioneering in nature, requiring scientists from all fields to be innovative and make breakthroughs. In this regard, STOC assumes significant social responsibility.
Xu Xun delivers an opening remark. (Courtesy of STOC GM)
Quan Nguyen, Director of the Genomics and Machine Learning Laboratory and Director of the Center for Immune Spatial Organizational Intelligence at the University of Queensland, Australia, and the scientific leader of STOC, a member of the STOC Organizing Committee, introduced the global opportunities and challenges of spatial genomics. He emphasized the necessity of global collaboration among academia, clinicians, and industry partners to jointly build channels for technological innovation and pave the way for the rapid translation of technology into patient benefits.
Quan Nguyen delivers an opening remark. (Courtesy of STOC GM)
Cheng Tao, President of Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, introduced the significant advancements in single-cell RNA sequencing and multi-omics technologies in the study of the hematopoietic ecosystem. These advancements enable researchers to trace the origins of hematopoietic stem cells, demonstrate the developmental dynamics of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells, reveal hematopoietic reconstitution post-transplantation, and analyze the characteristics of benign and malignant hematologic diseases. He also mentioned that he and his team are collaborating with BGI to use BGI's spatial omics technology to map the spatial atlas of blood-related organs such as bone marrow, further broadening the understanding of the pathogenesis and clinical treatment of hematologic diseases.
Cheng Tao presents a science report. (Courtesy of STOC GM)
During the roundtable discussion session, Xu Xun, the scientific leader of STOC, along with other scientists, led the attendees in discussions on topics such as "Sample and Technology," "Analysis and Integration," and "Data Access and Sharing." Among the participants, Chen Ao introduced technological advancements in conducting spatial multi-omics research at nano-resolution.
Chen Ao presents a science report. (Courtesy of STOC GM)
In the latest technology sharing session, Li Yuxiang introduced BGI's newly developed DCS Cloud data processing platform. By using DCS Cloud for analysis, different teams can jointly access the same data, effectively solving the issues of massive data sharing and access in cross-institutional scientific collaboration. This approach not only improves collaboration efficiency but also reduces data storage costs.
Li Yuxiang presents a science report. (Courtesy of STOC GM)
On July 9, Liu Longqi presented a keynote report on the research results of using high-resolution panoramic spatial transcriptomics to map brain cells. Liu noted that through the two major platforms of the STOC Neuro Working Group (STOC-Neuro) and the Mesoscopic Brain Connectome Project (MBCP), scientists in related fields have established a global collaboration network based on cellular and spatial multi-omics. By constructing spatiotemporal maps of brain cells in humans, non-human primates, mammals, and lower organisms, scientists have been able to study the structure and function of the brain at cellular resolution, the mechanisms of cell changes in pathological states, and the regulation of cell fate during development, as well as changes in cell types during species evolution. In addition, the research team developed a related brain atlas database, providing a valuable resource to promote global data sharing and brain research collaboration.
Liu Longqi presented a keynote report. (Courtesy of STOC GM)
In addition, Xia Keke shared the latest developments of the recently established Plant Spatiotemporal Omics Consortium (STOC-Plant). Built upon the SpatioTemporal Omics Consortium (STOC), STOC-Plant will focus on major scientific research issues in plant spatial omics. It aims to build an open, collaborative, and data-sharing international research organization, actively promoting the establishment of application standards for spatial omics technology in plant research. As a co-initiator and important member of STOC-Plant, BGI will continue to support the consortium in strengthening academic exchanges, disseminating cutting-edge knowledge, and promoting scientific collaboration. Through leading spatial omics technologies, BGI aims to assist global researchers in achieving more breakthrough results.
Xia Keke introduces recently the recent-established Plant Spatiotemporal Omics Consortium (STOC-Plant). (Courtesy of STOC GM)
About the SpatioTemporal Omics Consortium (STOC)
The SpatioTemporal Omics Consortium (STOC), established in May 2022, is an open international research collaboration organization. Its aim is to unite, organize, advance, and share global scientific efforts in the field of spatial omics, better leveraging the spirit of global "team science." The consortium seeks to address frontier scientific issues in scientific research and clinical applications by combining forces with the industry to jointly construct spatial cell atlases of different species, thereby advancing the development of life sciences. The consortium is led by an international organizing committee, which guides multiple working groups in their research efforts. As of June 2024, 358 scientists from 37 countries have joined the STOC, and this number continues to grow.
The establishment of the STOC is based on the development of spatial omics technologies. As a key promoter in the field of spatial omics, BGI launched its independently developed spatial multi-omics technology, Stereo-seq, in 2020. With its global leading capability to simultaneously achieve "nano-level resolution" and "centimeter-level panoramic view," Stereo-seq supports research and applications in major scientific questions such as aging, disease, consciousness origins, growth of organisms, and the origin of life. On May 5, 2022, BGI-Research, along with over 80 scientists from institutions including Harvard University, Oxford University, MIT, and Cambridge University from 15 countries, jointly initiated the STOC.
Since its inception, BGI has been actively involved in the construction and development of the consortium, assisting in the formation of multinational and interdisciplinary working groups in various fields such as standard setting, plant spatial omics research, and neuro-spatial omics research. This has provided more direction and precision to the development and research in the global spatial omics field, facilitating scientists worldwide to better conduct research in life sciences.