Lipids are essential cellular components forming membranes, serving as energy reserves, and acting as chemical messengers. Dysfunction in lipid metabolism and signaling is associated with a wide range of diseases including cancer and autoimmunity. Heterogeneity in cell behavior including lipid signaling is increasingly recognized as a driver of disease and drug resistance. This diversity in cellular responses as well as the roles of lipids in health and disease drive the need to quantify lipids within single cells. Single-cell lipid assays are challenging due to the small size of cells (∼1 pL) and the large numbers of lipid species present at concentrations spanning orders of magnitude. A growing number of methodologies enable assay of large numbers of lipid analytes, perform high-resolution spatial measurements, or permit highly sensitive lipid assays in single cells. Covered in this review are mass spectrometry, Raman imaging, and fluorescence-based assays including microscopy and microseparations.

中文翻译：

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脂质单细胞生化分析技术

脂质是形成细胞膜的重要细胞成分，充当能量储备并充当化学信使。脂质代谢和信号传导功能障碍与包括癌症和自身免疫在内的多种疾病有关。包括脂质信号传导在内的细胞行为的异质性越来越被认为是疾病和耐药性的驱动因素。细胞反应的多样性以及脂质在健康和疾病中的作用推动了量化单细胞内脂质的需求。由于细胞尺寸小（~1 pL）和浓度跨多个数量级的大量脂质种类，单细胞脂质测定具有挑战性。越来越多的方法能够分析大量脂质分析物，执行高分辨率空间测量，或允许在单细胞中进行高灵敏度脂质分析。本综述涵盖了质谱、拉曼成像和基于荧光的测定，包括显微镜和微分离。