bioimagesUnknownZhiguang ZhaoNature methodshttps://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-BIAD56bioimagesOrganizationStudy typeZhuo DuZhiguang ZhaofalseA 4D single-cell protein atlas of transcription factors delineates spatiotemporal patterning during embryogenesisComplex biological processes such as embryogenesis require precise coordination of cell differentiation programs across both space and time. Using protein-fusion fluorescent reporters and four-dimensional live imaging, we present a protein expression atlas of transcription factors (TFs) mapped onto developmental cell lineages during Caenorhabditis elegans embryogenesis, at single-cell resolution. This atlas reveals a spatiotemporal combinatorial code of TF expression, and a cascade of lineage-specific, tissue-specific and time-specific TFs that specify developmental states. The atlas uncovers regulators of embryogenesis, including an unexpected role of a skin specifier in neurogenesis and the critical function of an uncharacterized TF in convergent muscle differentiation. At the systems le2021-03-24T00:00:00Z20212023-04-11T00:46:23.208Z2021-03-24T02:09:27ZS-BIAD563431256610.1038/s41592-021-01216-1