ESPACE · Project

Complete Cell Map of the Human Pancreas to Accelerate Diabetes and Cancer Drug Discovery

healthPrototypeTRL 3Thin data (2/5)

espace-h2020.eu

Imagine having a detailed Google Maps — but for every single cell in your pancreas. That's what ESPACE built: a massive atlas cataloguing more than 1 million individual cells from healthy human pancreases, both adult and fetal. They mapped out what each cell does, which genes it activates, and how cells differ from person to person. This kind of map is a goldmine for anyone trying to understand why the pancreas goes wrong in diabetes or cancer.

By the numbers

1,000,000+

Single cells profiled in the pancreas atlas

Consortium partners across Europe and Israel

Countries represented in the consortium

Total project deliverables produced

Adult pancreas samples analyzed (target: 5 male, 5 female)

Fetal pancreas samples analyzed (gestation week 12-20)

The business problem

What needed solving

Pancreatic diseases — diabetes, pancreatic cancer, pancreatitis — are among the most devastating and hardest to treat. Drug developers and diagnostics companies lack a detailed cellular map of the healthy pancreas, making it extremely difficult to pinpoint which cells go wrong and why. Without this baseline, identifying new drug targets or early disease biomarkers is largely guesswork.

The solution

What was built

ESPACE built the first comprehensive Human Cell Atlas of the Pancreas, profiling more than 1 million single cells using RNA sequencing, epigenomics, and spatial proteomics. They delivered 29 outputs including standardized protocols for rare cell isolation (GateID), reproducible computational pipelines (One Touch Pipeline/OTP), and an open data repository on the HCA Data Coordination Platform.

Audience

Who needs this

Pharma companies developing Type 2 diabetes therapiesBiotech firms working on pancreatic cancer drug targetsDiagnostics companies building pancreatic disease biomarker panelsComputational biology startups training AI models on single-cell dataContract research organizations offering single-cell analysis services

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Pharmaceutical & Biotech

enterprise

Target: Drug discovery companies working on Type 2 diabetes or pancreatic cancer therapies

If you are a pharma company developing diabetes treatments — ESPACE built a single-cell atlas of over 1 million pancreatic cells with transcriptome and epigenomics data that reveals previously hidden cell types and states. This means you can identify new drug targets by understanding exactly which cells malfunction in Type 2 diabetes, rather than treating the pancreas as a black box. The atlas is openly available through the Human Cell Atlas Data Coordination Platform.

In Vitro Diagnostics

mid-size

Target: Companies developing biomarker panels for pancreatic diseases

If you are a diagnostics company struggling to detect pancreatic adenocarcinoma early enough for effective treatment — ESPACE's spatial proteomics data and single-cell profiles from 10 adult and 8 fetal pancreas samples provide a reference of what healthy pancreatic cells look like at the molecular level. You can compare disease samples against this baseline to identify diagnostic biomarkers. The project also developed standardized computational pipelines that make this analysis reproducible.

Digital Health & AI

any

Target: Companies building AI-powered drug discovery or computational biology platforms

If you are a computational biology company that needs high-quality training data for machine learning models — ESPACE produced standardized single-cell RNA sequencing, single-nucleus RNA sequencing, and single-cell ATAC sequencing datasets from healthy pancreatic tissue, all processed through their One Touch Pipeline (OTP). With 29 deliverables including validated protocols for isolating rare cell types, this dataset can train AI models to predict cell behavior in pancreatic diseases.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to access the ESPACE pancreas atlas data?

The atlas is designed as an open single-cell repository built on the Human Cell Atlas Data Coordination Platform. Based on available project data, the datasets and computational pipelines are intended for open access. Specific licensing terms for commercial use would need to be confirmed with the coordinator at Charité Berlin.

Can this atlas data be used at industrial scale for drug screening?

The atlas contains molecular profiles from more than 1 million single cells, integrating transcriptome, epigenomics, and spatial proteomics data. The computational pipelines were built into the One Touch Pipeline (OTP) system for reproducible processing. However, this is a reference atlas — translating it into a drug screening workflow would require additional development by the end user.

What is the IP situation — can we license the methods or data?

ESPACE was funded as a Research and Innovation Action (RIA), and the atlas is positioned as an open resource on the HCA Data Coordination Platform. The protocols for isolating rare pancreas cell types (GateID) and the computational pipelines may carry separate IP considerations. Contact the consortium through Charité Berlin to clarify commercial licensing options.

How standardized are the protocols — could we replicate them in our lab?

Standardization was a core goal. The consortium developed shared standards for sample procurement, single-cell profiling, and spatial proteomics across 11 partners in 6 countries. They also conducted formal knowledge-sharing and training between partner teams to ensure consistency. The protocols for tissue sampling and rare cell isolation are documented in the project deliverables.

What diseases does this atlas specifically address?

The atlas maps healthy adult and fetal pancreatic tissue as a baseline reference. ESPACE specifically extended its work into Type 2 diabetes, as stated in the project objectives. The atlas is also relevant to pancreatic adenocarcinoma and pancreatitis research, though disease-specific mapping would require further study.

How current is this data — is the project still active?

The project ran from January 2020 to June 2022 and is now closed. The data and methods remain available through the HCA Data Coordination Platform. The standards developed by ESPACE were designed to be applicable to Human Cell Atlas projects in other organs, so the methods continue to evolve in the broader HCA community.

Consortium

Who built it

The ESPACE consortium brings together 11 partners from 6 countries (Germany, Spain, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden), led by Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. The mix is research-heavy: 5 universities and 3 research organizations do the core science, while 3 industry partners (27% of the consortium) contribute specialized technology — likely sequencing platforms and computational tools. Only 1 partner is an SME. For a business looking to access this work, the strong academic base means deep scientific credibility but also means commercial translation will require active engagement from industry partners outside the consortium. The multi-country, multi-institution validation of protocols is a strength — methods tested across 11 labs in 6 countries carry more weight than single-lab results.

CHARITE - UNIVERSITAETSMEDIZIN BERLINCoordinator · DE
ACADEMISCH ZIEKENHUIS LEIDENparticipant · NL
KUNGLIGA TEKNISKA HOEGSKOLANparticipant · SE
KONINKLIJKE NEDERLANDSE AKADEMIE VAN WETENSCHAPPEN - KNAWparticipant · NL
TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAET MUENCHENparticipant · DE
STEINBEIS TRANSFER GMBHparticipant · DE
UNIVERSITAIR MEDISCH CENTRUM UTRECHTthirdparty · NL
RESEARCH FUND OF THE HADASSAH MEDICAL ORGANIZATION (R.A)participant · IL
OSPEDALE SAN RAFFAELE SRLparticipant · IT
FUNDACIO CENTRE DE REGULACIO GENOMICAparticipant · ES
LINQ MANAGEMENT GMBHparticipant · DE

How to reach the team

Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany. Use the CORDIS contact form or search for the ESPACE project coordinator at Charité.

Order a report on this consortium See CHARITE - UNIVERSITAETSMEDIZIN BERLIN profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore how the ESPACE pancreas atlas data could accelerate your diabetes or cancer research pipeline? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the consortium team and help you assess commercial licensing options.

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