Copyright
©The Author(s) 2026. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Oncol. Jan 24, 2026; 17(1): 113244
Published online Jan 24, 2026. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v17.i1.113244
Published online Jan 24, 2026. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v17.i1.113244
Single-cell differential abundance detection: A new angle on dissecting tumor heterogeneity
Ying-Xue Xiao, Jing Sun, Ling-Ling Xie, Yue Zou, Tong Li, You-Jin Hao, Bo Li, College of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing 401331, China
Author contributions: Xiao YX was responsible for writing the original draft; Xiao YX, Sun J, Xie LL, and Zou Y contributed to editing of the manuscript; Xiao YX, Xie LL, Zou Y, and Li B contributed to review of the manuscript; Xiao YX, Li T, and Hao YJ participated in the investigation and contributed to the visualizations; Sun J assisted with the review, Sun J and Li B provided resources; Li B supervised the project, managed the project administration, and contributed to the conceptualization. All authors have reviewed and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by Chongqing Natural Science Foundation, No. CSTB2025NSCQ-GPX1031.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Bo Li, PhD, Associate Professor, College of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, No. 37 University City Middle Road, Shapingba District, Chongqing 401331, China. libcell@cqnu.edu.cn
Received: August 20, 2025
Revised: September 14, 2025
Accepted: November 25, 2025
Published online: January 24, 2026
Processing time: 153 Days and 20 Hours
Revised: September 14, 2025
Accepted: November 25, 2025
Published online: January 24, 2026
Processing time: 153 Days and 20 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This review highlights differential abundance (DA) detection as a transformative framework in single-cell oncology, enabling high-resolution deconstruction of tumor heterogeneity. It surveys widely adopted DA methods and demonstrates how capturing dynamic shifts in cellular ecosystems yields critical mechanistic insights, supports clinical decision-making, and informs precision therapeutic strategies. The ongoing methodological refinements and multi-omics convergence will further elevate DA detection to a cornerstone technology in precision oncology.