Categorization of 34 computational methods to detect spatially variable genes from spatially resolved transcriptomics data

Abstract In the analysis of spatially resolved transcriptomics data, detecting spatially variable genes (SVGs) is crucial. Numerous computational methods exist, but varying SVG definitions and methodologies lead to incomparable results. We review 34 state-of-the-art methods, classifying SVGs into th...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Guanao Yan, Shuo Harper Hua, Jingyi Jessica Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-01-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-56080-w
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Summary:Abstract In the analysis of spatially resolved transcriptomics data, detecting spatially variable genes (SVGs) is crucial. Numerous computational methods exist, but varying SVG definitions and methodologies lead to incomparable results. We review 34 state-of-the-art methods, classifying SVGs into three categories: overall, cell-type-specific, and spatial-domain-marker SVGs. Our review explains the intuitions underlying these methods, summarizes their applications, and categorizes the hypothesis tests they use in the trade-off between generality and specificity for SVG detection. We discuss challenges in SVG detection and propose future directions for improvement. Our review offers insights for method developers and users, advocating for category-specific benchmarking.
ISSN:2041-1723