InquirySurrounded by blood and lymphatic vessels, the prostate is a walnut-sized gland located below the bladder in front of the rectum. Although the prostate is made up of several cell types, the majority is made up of glandular cells. Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer that threatens the lives of millions of men worldwide each year. It is the most commonly diagnosed type of cancer in men other than skin cancer.
Genetic changes in tumors include mutations in key regulatory genes, changes in protein products, and changes in the number of gene products (gene expression). As the changes accumulate, the cells become more abnormal and produce prostate cancer. Usually, early prostate cancer is not accompanied by any symptoms. Then early tissue examination and genetic analysis can be used to more accurately assess prostate cancer risk and detect aggressive prostate cancer.
How the spatial-omics solutions we offer can be useful in prostate cancer research
CD Genomics uses spatial transcriptomics technology, Slide-seq, and ATAC-seq, which allows transcriptome analysis of hundreds of locations in tissue sections at high spatial resolution (2-100 μm). It has also been successfully used to study many types of malignancies, including prostate cancer. This provides new opportunities to develop selective drug targets for prostate cancer and to dissect spatial metabolic heterogeneity in the tumor microenvironment.
Figure 1. Study design for spatial transcriptomics (ST) in prostate cancer. (Berglund, E., et al., 2018)
Available to our clients
- Assess prostate cancer and adjacent cancer tissue at spatial resolution.
- Gain insight into gene expression changes during prostate cancer progression.
- Explore prostate cancer as well as the tumor microenvironment in a transcriptome spatial dimension.
- Functional differences in gene expression between cancer centers and periphery.
- Characterize the spatial gene expression heterogeneity within the sample.
Sample types available for analysis: Frozen sections (for compatibility with FFPE samples, please consult directly with our technical director)
Technical features and advantages
- More accurately depicts the extent of prostate cancer lesions.
- Allows quantification of mRNA in the spatial environment of intact tissue.
- Combines ATAC-seq with spatial transcriptomics to provide insight into prostate cancer biology.
- Understand the cell populations associated with prostate cancer recurrence.
- Provides insight into tumor heterogeneity by analyzing gene expression.
- Allows for re-stratification of the tumor microenvironment.
We did a better job
The spatial location of cells has a profound effect on their function. In addition to prostate cancer, CD Genomics offers solutions to obtain spatially resolved transcriptomic datasets for studying spatial heterogeneity and coordination of metabolic activities. This helps our customers to identify subpopulations of cells that have regenerative potential when treated. It can also be used to study the spatial regulation of normal physiology in the liver, heart, and kidney.
Reference
- Berglund, E., et al., (2018). "Spatial maps of prostate cancer transcriptomes reveal an unexplored landscape of heterogeneity." Nature Communications. 9, 2419.
