Fig. 3From: Spatial transcriptomics: recent developments and insights in respiratory researchApplications of ST to respiratory research. ST is used to construct lungs spatial atlas and identify cellular composition. In lung cancer, the tumor microenvironment [63] and heterogeneity [64], evolution and metastasis [65], and further localization of intratumoral microbiota origin [66] have been revealed by ST. Other applications of ST include gene expression patterns in lung development [67], and the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis [68] and COVID-19 pneumonia [69]. ST spatial transcriptomic, COVID-19 corona virus disease 2019, NK cell natural killer cellBack to article page