Modeling the cancer transcriptome: Recent initiatives such as The Cancer Genome Atlas have mapped the genome-wide effect of individual genes on tumor growth. By unraveling genomic alterations in tumors, molecular subtypes of cancers have been identified, which is improving patient diagnostics and treatment. Uhlen et al. developed a computer-based modeling approach to examine different cancer types in nearly 8000 patients. They provide an open-access resource for exploring how the expression of specific genes influences patient survival in 17 different types of cancer. More than 900,000 patient survival profiles are available, including for tumors of colon, prostate, lung, and breast origin. This interactive data set can also be used to generate personalized patient models to predict how metabolic changes can influence tumor growth. Science , this issue p. eaan2507

Mapping the proteome: Proteins function in the context of their environment, so an understanding of cellular processes requires a knowledge of protein localization. Thul et al. used immunofluorescence microscopy to map 12,003 human proteins at a single-cell level into 30 cellular compartments and substructures (see the Perspective by Horwitz and Johnson). They validated their results by mass spectroscopy and used them to model and refine protein-protein interaction networks. The cellular proteome is highly spatiotemporally regulated. Many proteins localize to multiple compartments, and many show cell-to-cell variation in their expression patterns. Presented as an interactive database called the Cell Atlas, this work provides an important resource for ongoing efforts to understand human biology. Science , this issue p. eaal3321 ; see also p. 806

Single-cell RNA analysis has been integrated with spatial protein profiling to create a single–cell type map of human tissues.

Mapping the mammalian brain: The diverse physiology of the brain is reflected in its complex organization at regional, cellular, and subcellular levels. Sjöstedt et al. combined data—both newly acquired and from other large-scale brain mapping projects—from transcriptomics, single-cell genomics, in situ hybridization, and antibody-based protein profiling to map the molecular profiles in human, pig, and mouse brain. The analysis is consistent with a conserved basic brain architecture during mammalian evolution, but it does show differences in regional gene expression profiles. Science , this issue p. eaay5947

Epidemiological data suggest that early life exposures are key determinants of immune-mediated disease later in life. Young children are also particularly susceptible to infections, warranting more analyses of immune system development early in life. Such analyses mostly have been performed in mouse models or human cord blood samples, but these cannot account for the complex environmental exposures influencing human newborns after birth. Here, we performed longitudinal analyses in 100 newborn children, sampled up to 4 times during their first 3 months of life. From 100 μL of blood, we analyze the development of 58 immune cell populations by mass cytometry and 267 plasma proteins by immunoassays, uncovering drastic changes not predictable from cord blood measurements but following a stereotypic pattern. Preterm and term children differ at birth but converge onto a shared trajectory, seemingly driven by microbial interactions and hampered by early gut bacterial dysbiosis.

A blood cell protein-expression atlas: Genome-wide analyses are increasingly providing resources for advances in basic and applied biomedical science. Uhlen et al. performed a global expression analysis of human blood cell types and integrated this data with data across all major human tissues and organs in the human protein atlas. This comprehensive compendium allows for classification of all human protein-coding genes with regard to their tissue- and cell-type distribution. Science , this issue p. eaax9198