| AVS 65th International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Industrial Physics Forum | Tuesday Sessions |
| Session IPF+AS+BI+MN-TuM |
| Session: | Advanced Imaging and Structure Determination of Biomaterials |
| Presenter: | Rory T. Steven, National Physical Laboratory, UK |
| Authors: | J. Bunch, National Physical Laboratory, UK R. Steven, National Physical Laboratory, UK |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
Mass spectrometry (MS) is one of the most powerful techniques for chemical analysis and when combined with an imaging modality allows molecular chemistry to be visualised in 2D and 3D, from the nano- to the macroscale, in ambient conditions and in real‐time. There are numerous techniques each having different modes of operation including label‐free and labelled analyses.
Cancer Research UK has identified that building an understanding of the inter- and intra- heterogeneity of tumours and their evolution over time and in response to therapy will require greater insight into the underlying biology, using in vivo and in vitro models and integrating biomarkers into both early- and late-phase trials. In 2017 the Grand Challenge programme was launched. Our collaborative action involves NPL, Imperial College London, The Beatson Institute, ICR, Barts Cancer Institute, The Francis Crick Institute, The University of Cambridge and AstraZeneca. Together we will develop a validated pipeline for multi-scale imaging of tumours collected from GEMMs and patients.
By pursuing a multiscale (organ to organelle) and multi-omics approach with a range of mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) techniques (MALDI, DESI, SIMS and ICP MS), we aim to deepen our understanding of the interplay of genes, proteins, metabolites and the role of the immune system in cancer development and growth.
This presentation will review early results and a discussion of the challenges associated with such a large, multi-technique, multi-site, mass spectrometry project.