Biomarkers Based On Molecular Composition Of Cells
SUMMARY
UCLA researchers in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering have developed a novel biomarker based on spectroscopic analysis of proteins in cell membranes.
BACKGROUND
The global market for biomarkers is expected to exceed $95 billion by 2020 due to their wide applicability in diagnostics, imaging, and personalized medicines. The majority of proteomic biomarkers are focused on single protein types, such as analysis of prostate-specific antigen as an indicator for prostate cancer. However, there have been a decrease in the number of novel FDA-approved protein biomarkers due to high sensitivity requirements for detection of often rare marker proteins, as well as loss of diagnosis effectiveness as cancer cells mature and change. An approach that targets overall molecular composition can offer high specificity and sensitivity, while enabling fast throughput and ease of operation.
INNOVATION
Professor Xie and coworkers have developed a novel method of categorizing and analyzing cells using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy. Instead of focusing on a specific biomarker, relative protein abundance in cell membranes is collected in the form Raman spectra and statistically analyzed to categorize cell types, focusing on the overall protein composition. The approach is fast and has been demonstrated on cancer cells, fungi, and amyloid beta fragments with high specificity and sensitivity. Cells in different stages of homeostasis can also be differentiated.
APPLICATIONS
- Identification of cancerous cells
- Distinguishing between cancer types
- Identification of bacterial or fungal infections
- Diagnosis or analysis of amyloid beta fragments in Alzheimer’s Disease
ADVANTAGES
- No need to identify specific biomarker molecules
- Amenable to high throughput screenings
- Applicable to a wide variety of protein types
STATE OF DEVELOPMENT
Biomarker has been developed using Raman spectroscopy and used to differentiate cells of interest, including breast vs lung cancer cells, bacteria of same genus but different species, bacteria of different strains, exosomes of healthy and lung cancer cells, and amyloid beta fragments.