License: This is an open access protocol distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Protocol status: Working
We use this protocol and it's working
Created: January 30, 2026
Last Modified: February 01, 2026
Protocol Integer ID: 242361
Keywords: seq with crop, cell rna, transcriptome, like rna polymerase ii transcript, like rna polymerase, rna polymerase ii transcript, crispr, using split, seq combinatorial indexing, seq, split, scalable profiling without droplet, transcript, same cell
Single-cell RNA sequencing is performed using Split-seq combinatorial indexing, enabling scalable profiling without droplets. Both the transcriptome and CRISPR guide identity are captured from the same cell via a CROP-like RNA polymerase II transcript.
1. Prepare cells (up to 1M cells, at least 500k) in single cell suspension, put on ice, count
2. Centrifuge at 300g at 4ºC for 5min, remove supernatant
3. Resuspend cells in 187.5µL cold 1X PBS+RI
4. Pipette cells through a 40µm strainer into a new tube, keep on ice
- for cells larger than 40µm, can use 70µm or 100µm strainer instead
- press pipette tip directly against strainer with force
5. Add 12.5µL fresh 16% Formaldehyde (for final 1%, Thermo 28906) to fix, mix by pipetting 3x, incubate on ice for 10min
- additional mixing will lead to more doublets
6. Add 4µL10% Triton (for final 0.2%, Sigma T8787) to permeabilize, mix by pipetting 5x, incubate on ice for 3min
7. Add 40µL1M Tris (Thermo AM9856), and 1mL1X PBS+RI
8. Centrifuge at 500g at 4ºC for 5min, remove supernatant
9. Resuspend cells in 240µL1X PBS+RI
10. Immediately before use, resuspend BS3 in water for 50mM final: 2mg BS3 + 70µL H2O
- reconstituted BS3 quickly hydrolyzes in water, use immediately
11. Add 10µL50mM BS3 to resuspended cells, incubate on ice for 20min
12. Add 5µL10% Triton, incubate on ice for 3min
13. Add 50µL1M Tris, and 1mL1X PBS+RI
14. Centrifuge at 500g at 4ºC for 5min, remove supernatant
15. Resuspend in 150µL0.5X PBS+RI
16. Pass cells through a 40µm strainer into a new tube, keep on ice
17. Count the number of cells, keep cells on ice during counting and proceed quickly to minimize the time fixed cells are out
18. To freeze cells:
1) add 2.5µL DMSO, gently flick tube 3x to mix, incubate on ice for 1min
2) repeat twice to add a total of 7.5µL DMSO
3) mix the final suspension by gently pipetting 5x with P200 pipette without creating bubbles
o do NOT vortex cells
4) split into aliquots (no more than 500k cells per aliquot)
5) store in Mr. Frosty (cooling at -1ºC/min) at -80ºC
- Stop: can store at -80ºC
Prepare Barcodes and Reagents
- to barcode 100k cells, load ~400k cells (~4X) for Round1 RT
- to sequence 100k cells, need at least 1M (10X) barcode combinations: 24x96x96 = 220k combinations after 3 rounds of barcoding, and need at least 5 sublibraries
1. Generate 3 barcoding stock plates
- oligos
o RT Barcode Plate (100µM, /5Phos/ACTGTGG-N8-polyT or -random_hexamer or -direct_capture)
o Round2 Barcode Plate (100µM, /5Phos/CATCGGCGTACGACT-N8-ATCCACGTGCTTGAG)
o Round3 Barcode Plate (100µM, /5Biosg/CAGACGTGTGCTCTTCCGATCT-N10-N8-GTGGCCGATGTTTCG)
o Round2 Linker (1mM, CCACAGTCTCAAGCACG)
o Round2 Blocking (1mM, CGTGCTTGAGACTGTGG)
o Round3 Linker (1mM, TACGCCGATGCGAAACATCG)
o Round3 Blocking (1mM, GTGGCCGATGTTTCGCATCGGCGTACGACT)
- prepare:
o 25mM NaCl to help annealing: 250µL 5M NaCl (Thermo J60434) + 49.75mL H2O
- can be prepared in advance, then store at -20ºC, keep on ice after thaw
A
B
C
D
Storage
Volume
10X PBS
Thermo AM9625
room
400µL
10% Triton X-100
Sigma T8787
room
40µL
Protector RNase Inhibitor (40U/µL)
Sigma 3335399001
-20ºC
10µL
Enzymatics RNase Inhibitor (40U/µL)
Enzymatic Y9240L
-20ºC
10µL
H2O
room
3.6mL
Total
4.06mL
Barcoding Single Cells
- use swing bucket centrifuge for all spins, fixed-angle centrifuge will lead to substantial cell loss
- use polypropylene tubes, polystyrene tubes will lead to substantial cell loss
- maximize cell retention during pooling by pipetting up and down several times (in the middle and on the front & back sides) in each well before pooling
- avoid excess bubble formation (not affect quality) by pipetting up and down with pipette set to 10µL less volume, pooling, then collecting any remaining liquid
1. Thaw Round1, Round2, Round3 plates in a thermocycler
o Lid Temperature: 70ºC
o Reaction Volume: 26µL for Round1, 10µL for Round2 & Round3
Temp
Time
25ºC
10min
4ºC
Hold
2. Sample Counting and Loading Setup
1) thaw fixed cell samples at 37ºC until all ice crystals dissolve, then put on ice
o important to fully thaw samples before placing on ice
2) count the number of cells in each sample
3) dilute samples with Dilution Buffer (0.5X PBS + RNase Inhibitor), put on ice
3. Round1 Reverse Transcription Barcoding
1) centrifuge Round1 plate at 100g for 1min, put on ice
2) add 14µL diluted cells to each well of Round1 plate according to the Loading Table; immediately after adding cells, mix gently by pipetting up and down exactly 3x
o when pipetting same sample into many wells, periodically mix sample by gentle pipetting to avoid cell settling; do NOT vortex cells
o use different tips when pipetting cells into each well
3) reverse transcription (~40min)
o Lid Temperature: 70ºC
o Reaction Volume: 40µL (14µL cells + 18µL RT Mix + 8µL Primer Mix)
A
B
C
Cycles
Temp
Time
1
50ºC
10min
3
8ºC
12s
15ºC
45s
20ºC
45s
30ºC
30s
42ºC
2min
53ºC
3min
1
53ºC
5min
1
55ºC
5min
1
4ºC
Hold
4) pool all wells from Round1 Plate into a 2mL tube on ice
o set pipette to 30µL, mix up and down at least 3x on each side to retain settled cells
o both Round1 Plate and 2mL tube with pooled cells should be kept on ice during pooling
5) discard Round1 Plate
6) add 9.6µL (for 24-well) or 19.2µL (for 48-well) Spin Additive (10% Triton X-100) for final concentration of 0.1% to the pooled cells, gently invert once to mix
7) centrifuge the pooled cells at 200g at 4ºC for 10min in a swinging bucket
o proceed to the next step immediately, avoid dislodging the cell pellet
8) remove supernatant with P1000 and P200 pipettes, leave ~40µL of liquid
o do not disturb the pellet
9) gently resuspend with 1mL Resuspension Buffer (NEBuffer r3.1 + RNase Inhibitor), once cells are fully resuspended, add an additional 1mL for 2mL total, keep on ice
4. Round2 Ligation Barcoding
1) make sure 20µL T4 DNA Ligase (2,000U/µL) have been added to the Ligation Mix
o do not vortex
2) add 2mL of cells in Resuspension Buffer into 2.04mL Ligation Mix, mix 10x with P1000, keep on ice
3) centrifuge Round2 Plate at 100g for 1min, keep at room temp
4) add entirety of cells to a basin, add 40µL cell mix to each well of Round2 plate; as adding cells, pipetting up and down exactly 2x to ensure proper mixing
o avoid cells settling in basin by gently pipetting up and down 2x before transferring cells
o if volume is insufficient to fill every well, a few wells can be left empty
o use different tips when pipetting cells into each well
5) incubate at 37ºC for 30min while shaking (15s at 900RPM, 1min45s pause)
o Lid Temperature: 50ºC
o Reaction Volume: 50µL (40µL cell + 10µL R2 primer)
6) vortex Round2 Stop Mix briefly, add all to a basin
7) transfer Round2 Plate from thermocycler, keep at room temp
8) add 10µLRound2 Stop Mix to each well of Round2 Plate, pipette up and down exactly 3x to ensure proper mixing
o use different tips when pipetting Stop Mix into each well
9) incubate at 37ºC for 30min while shaking (15s at 900RPM, 1min45s pause)
o Lid Temperature: 50ºC
o Reaction Volume: 60µL (40µL cell + 10µL R2 primer + 10µL R2 Stop)
10) transfer Round2 Plate from thermocycler, keep at room temp
11) pool all wells from Round2 Plate into a new basin
o set pipette to 50µL, mix up and down at least 3x on each side to retain settled cells
12) discard Round2 Plate
13) pass all cells through a 40µm strainer into a new basin
o press the tip of pipette against the filter to ensure all liquid passes
5. Round3 Ligation Barcoding
- keep on ice: T4 DNA Ligase (2,000U/µL, NEB M0202M, store at -20ºC)
1) add 20µL T4 DNA Ligase (2,000U/µL) to the basin with strained cells, mix by gently pipetting up and down ~20x
2) centrifuge Round3 Plate at 100g for 1min, keep at room temp
3) add 50µL cell mix to each well of Round3 plate; as adding cells, pipetting up and down exactly 2x to ensure proper mixing
o avoid cells settling in basin by gently pipetting up and down 2x before transferring cells
o if volume is insufficient to fill every well, a few wells can be left empty
o use different tips when pipetting cells into each well
4) incubate at 37ºC for 30min while shaking (15s at 900RPM, 1min45s pause)
o Lid Temperature: 50ºC
o Reaction Volume: 60µL (50µL cell + 10µL R3 primer)
5) vortex Round3 Stop Mix briefly, add all to a basin
6) transfer Round3 Plate from thermocycler, keep at room temp
7) add 20µLRound3 Stop Mix to each well of Round3 Plate, pipette up and down exactly 3x to ensure proper mixing
o use different tips when pipetting Stop Mix into each well
o no incubation required, proceed directly to pooling
8) pool all wells from Round3 Plate into a new basin
o set pipette to 70µL, mix up and down at least 3x on each side to retain settled cells
9) discard Round3 Plate
10) pass all cells through a 40µm strainer into a new 15mL tube
o press the tip of pipette against the filter to ensure all liquid passes
6. Lysis and Sublibrary Generation
- keep on ice: Proteinase K (20mg/mL, Thermo 25530049, store at -20ºC)
o can be prepared in advance, store at 4ºC, keep at 37ºC until use to dissolve precipitate
A
B
C
D
Storage
Volume
1M Tris, pH8
Thermo AM9856
room
20µL
5M NaCl
Thermo J60434
room
80µL
0.5M EDTA, pH8
Thermo 15575020
room
200µL
10% SDS
Sigma 71736
room
440µL
H2O
room
260µL
Total
1mL
2) add 60µLSpin Additive (10% Triton X-100) for final concentration of 0.1% to the pooled cells, gently invert once to mix
3) centrifuge the pooled cells at 200g at 4ºC for 10min in a swinging bucket
4) remove supernatant with P1000 and P200 pipettes, leave ~40µL of liquid
5) gently resuspend with 1mL Pre-Lyse Wash Buffer (0.1% Triton X-100/PBS + RNase Inhibitor), pipette slowly to prevent mechanical damage to cells; once cells are fully resuspended, add an additional 3mL for 4mL total
6) centrifuge the pooled cells at 200g at 4ºC for 10min in a swinging bucket
7) remove supernatant with P1000 and P200 pipettes, leave ~40µL of liquid
8) gently resuspend pellet with 100µL Dilution Buffer to bring the volume to ~100µL, transfer to a 1.5mL tube, keep on ice
9) set pipette to 80µL, gently pipette up and down 5x, immediately use 6µL to count
10) aliquot sublibraries, record sublibrary sizes and labels, add Dilution Buffer to 25µL, keep on ice
o each sublibrary will have separate sequencing index
o useful to have at least one sublibrary with few cells (200-500) with deep sequence (>50,000 reads per cell), this sublibrary provides good estimate of transcript detection per cell that would be expected if other sublibraries were also sequenced deeply
o do not overload a sublibrary, 12,500 cells/sublibrary is the maximum
11) per sublibrary, add 25µL2X Lysis Buffer and 5µLProteinase K, keep at room temp
12) vortex for 10s to initiate lysis, briefly centrifuge
13) incubate at 65ºC for 60min while shaking (15s at 900RPM, 1min45s pause)
1) vortex Streptavidin beads, take (44µL x # sublibrary) beads to a 1.5mL tube
2) put on magnet until liquid becomes clear (~2min), discard supernatant
3) remove from magnet, resuspend with (100µL x # sublibrary) Bead Wash Buffer, ensure all beads are fully resuspended, not stuck to the side
4) put on magnet until liquid becomes clear (~2min), discard supernatant
5) repeat wash twice more for a total of three washes
6) resuspend with (55µL x # sublibrary) Bind Buffer A, keep at room temp
3. Apply Streptavidin beads to sublibrary lysates
- obtain:
o Lysis Neutralizer: 100mM PMSF (Thermo 36978, -20ºC): add isopropanol to dissolve, make sure at saturate level by still having white undissolved in the bottom
1) remove sublibrary lysates from -80ºC, incubate at 37ºC for 5min, ensure no precipitate before proceeding, quick centrifuge sublibrary lysates
2) per sublibrary, add 2.5µLLysis Neutralizer (100mM PMSF), mix 5x (set to 40µL); quick centrifuge, incubate at room temp for 10min
3) per sublibrary, add 50µLStreptavidin beads in Bind Buffer A, mix 5x (set to 90µL)
4) incubate at 25ºC for 60min while shaking (30s at 1400RPM, 30s pause)
5) quick centrifuge, put on magnet High until liquid becomes clear, discard supernatant
o cDNA is unamplified, discarding any beads will result in reduction of transcripts detected
6) resuspend beads with 125µL Bind Buffer B, keep at room temp for 1min
7) put on magnet High until liquid becomes clear, discard supernatant
8) repeat wash with 125µLBind Buffer B
9) resuspend beads with 125µL Bead Storage Buffer, keep at room temp for 1min
4. Template Switch
- oligo:
o Split_TSO (100µM, /5dSp/AAGCAGTGGTATCAACGCAGAGTGAATrGrGrG, order as RNA with HPLC purification)
- obtain:
o Maxima H Minus RT (200U/µL) and 5X RT Buffer (Thermo EP0753, -20ºC)