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Grzybowska EA. Circulating Tumor Cells: Pathological, Molecular and Functional Characteristics. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:8198. [PMID: 39125767 PMCID: PMC11311292 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25158198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2024] [Accepted: 07/25/2024] [Indexed: 08/12/2024] Open
Abstract
This Special Issue, 'Circulating Tumor Cells: Pathological, Molecular and Functional Characteristics 1 [...].
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Affiliation(s)
- Ewa A Grzybowska
- Maria Sklodowska-Curie National Research Institute of Oncology, Roentgena 5, 02-781 Warsaw, Poland
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Farhang Ghahremani M, Seto KKY, Cho W, Miller MC, Smith P, Englert DF. Novel method for highly multiplexed gene expression profiling of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) captured from the blood of women with metastatic breast cancer. J Transl Med 2023; 21:414. [PMID: 37365600 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-023-04242-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Enumeration of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) has proven clinical significance for monitoring patients with metastatic cancers. Multiplexed gene expression profiling of CTCs is a potential tool for assessing disease status and monitoring treatment response. The Parsortix® technology enables the capture and harvest of CTCs from blood based on cell size and deformability. The HyCEAD™ (Hybrid Capture Enrichment Amplification and Detection) assay enables simultaneous amplification of short amplicons for up to 100 mRNA targets, and the Ziplex™ instrument quantifies the amplicons for highly sensitive gene expression profiling down to single cell levels. The aim of the study was to functionally assess this system. METHODS The HyCEAD/Ziplex platform was used to quantify the expression levels for 72 genes using as little as 20 pg of total RNA or a single cultured tumor cell. Assay performance was evaluated using cells or total RNA spiked into Parsortix harvests of healthy donor blood. The assay was also evaluated using total RNA obtained from Parsortix harvests of blood from metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients or healthy volunteers (HVs). RESULTS Using genes with low expression in WBC RNA and/or in unspiked Parsortix harvests from HVs, the assay distinguished between the different breast cancer and ovarian cancer cell lines with as little as 20 pg of total RNA (equivalent to a single cell) in the presence of 1 ng of WBC RNA. Single cultured cells spiked into Parsortix harvests from 10 mL of HV blood were also detected and distinguished from each other. CVs from repeatability experiments were less than 20%. Hierarchical clustering of clinical samples differentiated most MBC patients from HVs. CONCLUSION HyCEAD/Ziplex provided sensitive quantification of expression of 72 genes from 20 pg of total RNA from cultured tumor cell lines or from single cultured tumor cells spiked into lysates from Parsortix harvests of HV blood. The HyCEAD/Ziplex platform enables the quantification of selected genes in the presence of residual nucleated blood cells in Parsortix harvests. The HyCEAD/Ziplex platform is an effective tool for multiplexed molecular characterization of mRNA in small numbers of tumor cells harvested from blood.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Michael Craig Miller
- Clinical Development, ANGLE North America, Inc., Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Paul Smith
- ANGLE Biosciences Inc., Toronto, ON, Canada
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Strati A, Markou A, Kyriakopoulou E, Lianidou E. Detection and Molecular Characterization of Circulating Tumour Cells: Challenges for the Clinical Setting. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:cancers15072185. [PMID: 37046848 PMCID: PMC10092977 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15072185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2022] [Revised: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 04/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Over the last decade, liquid biopsy has gained much attention as a powerful tool in personalized medicine since it enables monitoring cancer evolution and follow-up of cancer patients in real time. Through minimally invasive procedures, liquid biopsy provides important information through the analysis of circulating tumour cells (CTCs) and circulating tumour-derived material, such as circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA), circulating miRNAs (cfmiRNAs) and extracellular vehicles (EVs). CTC analysis has already had an important impact on the prognosis, detection of minimal residual disease (MRD), treatment selection and monitoring of cancer patients. Numerous clinical trials nowadays include a liquid biopsy arm. CTC analysis is now an exponentially expanding field in almost all types of solid cancers. Functional studies, mainly based on CTC-derived cell-lines and CTC-derived explants (CDx), provide important insights into the metastatic process. The purpose of this review is to summarize the latest findings on the clinical significance of CTCs for the management of cancer patients, covering the last four years. This review focuses on providing a comprehensive overview of CTC analysis in breast, prostate and non-small-cell lung cancer. The unique potential of CTC single-cell analysis for understanding metastasis biology, and the importance of quality control and standardization of methodologies used in this field, is also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Areti Strati
- Analysis of Circulating Tumour Cells Lab, Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15771 Athens, Greece
| | - Athina Markou
- Analysis of Circulating Tumour Cells Lab, Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15771 Athens, Greece
| | | | - Evi Lianidou
- Analysis of Circulating Tumour Cells Lab, Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15771 Athens, Greece
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Tretyakova MS, Menyailo ME, Schegoleva AA, Bokova UA, Larionova IV, Denisov EV. Technologies for Viable Circulating Tumor Cell Isolation. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232415979. [PMID: 36555625 PMCID: PMC9788311 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232415979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2022] [Revised: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The spread of tumor cells throughout the body by traveling through the bloodstream is a critical step in metastasis, which continues to be the main cause of cancer-related death. The detection and analysis of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is important for understanding the biology of metastasis and the development of antimetastatic therapy. However, the isolation of CTCs is challenging due to their high heterogeneity and low representation in the bloodstream. Different isolation methods have been suggested, but most of them lead to CTC damage. However, viable CTCs are an effective source for developing preclinical models to perform drug screening and model the metastatic cascade. In this review, we summarize the available literature on methods for isolating viable CTCs based on different properties of cells. Particular attention is paid to the importance of in vitro and in vivo models obtained from CTCs. Finally, we emphasize the current limitations in CTC isolation and suggest potential solutions to overcome them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria S. Tretyakova
- Laboratory of Cancer Progression Biology, Cancer Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, 634009 Tomsk, Russia
| | - Maxim E. Menyailo
- Laboratory of Cancer Progression Biology, Cancer Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, 634009 Tomsk, Russia
- Single Cell Biology Laboratory, Research Institute of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University), 117198 Moscow, Russia
| | - Anastasia A. Schegoleva
- Laboratory of Cancer Progression Biology, Cancer Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, 634009 Tomsk, Russia
- Single Cell Biology Laboratory, Research Institute of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University), 117198 Moscow, Russia
| | - Ustinia A. Bokova
- Laboratory of Cancer Progression Biology, Cancer Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, 634009 Tomsk, Russia
| | - Irina V. Larionova
- Laboratory of Cancer Progression Biology, Cancer Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, 634009 Tomsk, Russia
| | - Evgeny V. Denisov
- Laboratory of Cancer Progression Biology, Cancer Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, 634009 Tomsk, Russia
- Single Cell Biology Laboratory, Research Institute of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University), 117198 Moscow, Russia
- Correspondence: ; Tel./Fax: +7-3822-282676 (ext. 3375)
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Cohen EN, Jayachandran G, Moore RG, Cristofanilli M, Lang JE, Khoury JD, Press MF, Kim KK, Khazan N, Zhang Q, Zhang Y, Kaur P, Guzman R, Miller MC, Reuben JM, Ueno NT. A Multi-Center Clinical Study to Harvest and Characterize Circulating Tumor Cells from Patients with Metastatic Breast Cancer Using the Parsortix ® PC1 System. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:5238. [PMID: 36358657 PMCID: PMC9656921 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14215238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 08/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) captured from the blood of cancer patients may serve as a surrogate source of tumor material that can be obtained via a venipuncture (also known as a liquid biopsy) and used to better understand tumor characteristics. However, the only FDA-cleared CTC assay has been limited to the enumeration of surface marker-defined cells and not further characterization of the CTCs. In this study, we tested the ability of a semi-automated device capable of capturing and harvesting CTCs from peripheral blood based on cell size and deformability, agnostic of cell-surface markers (the Parsortix® PC1 System), to yield CTCs for evaluation by downstream techniques commonly available in clinical laboratories. The data generated from this study were used to support a De Novo request (DEN200062) for the classification of this device, which the FDA recently granted. As part of a multicenter clinical trial, peripheral blood samples from 216 patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) and 205 healthy volunteers were subjected to CTC enrichment. A board-certified pathologist enumerated the CTCs from each participant by cytologic evaluation of Wright-Giemsa-stained slides. As proof of principle, cells harvested from a concurrent parallel sample provided by each participant were evaluated using one of three additional evaluation techniques: molecular profiling by qRT-PCR, RNA sequencing, or cytogenetic analysis of HER2 amplification by FISH. The study demonstrated that the Parsortix® PC1 System can effectively capture and harvest CTCs from the peripheral blood of MBC patients and that the harvested cells can be evaluated using orthogonal methodologies such as gene expression and/or Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH).
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Affiliation(s)
- Evan N. Cohen
- Department of Hematopathology Research, Division of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Gitanjali Jayachandran
- Department of Hematopathology Research, Division of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Richard G. Moore
- Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wilmot Cancer Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14620, USA
| | - Massimo Cristofanilli
- Department of Medicine-Hematology and Oncology, Robert H Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
| | - Julie E. Lang
- USC Breast Cancer Program, Keck School of Medicine, Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Joseph D. Khoury
- Department of Pathology, Breast Cancer Analysis Laboratory, Keck School of Medicine, Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Michael F. Press
- Department of Pathology, Breast Cancer Analysis Laboratory, Keck School of Medicine, Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Kyu Kwang Kim
- Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wilmot Cancer Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14620, USA
| | - Negar Khazan
- Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wilmot Cancer Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14620, USA
| | - Qiang Zhang
- Department of Medicine-Hematology and Oncology, Robert H Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
| | - Youbin Zhang
- Department of Medicine-Hematology and Oncology, Robert H Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
| | - Pushpinder Kaur
- USC Breast Cancer Program, Keck School of Medicine, Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Roberta Guzman
- Department of Pathology, Breast Cancer Analysis Laboratory, Keck School of Medicine, Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Michael C. Miller
- ANGLE Clinical Studies, ANGLE Europe Limited, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7AF, UK
| | - James M. Reuben
- Department of Hematopathology Research, Division of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Naoto T. Ueno
- Department of Breast Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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Khan T, Becker TM, Po JW, Chua W, Ma Y. Single-Circulating Tumor Cell Whole Genome Amplification to Unravel Cancer Heterogeneity and Actionable Biomarkers. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23158386. [PMID: 35955517 PMCID: PMC9369222 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23158386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2022] [Revised: 07/25/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The field of single-cell analysis has advanced rapidly in the last decade and is providing new insights into the characterization of intercellular genetic heterogeneity and complexity, especially in human cancer. In this regard, analyzing single circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is becoming particularly attractive due to the easy access to CTCs from simple blood samples called “liquid biopsies”. Analysis of multiple single CTCs has the potential to allow the identification and characterization of cancer heterogeneity to guide best therapy and predict therapeutic response. However, single-CTC analysis is restricted by the low amounts of DNA in a single cell genome. Whole genome amplification (WGA) techniques have emerged as a key step, enabling single-cell downstream molecular analysis. Here, we provide an overview of recent advances in WGA and their applications in the genetic analysis of single CTCs, along with prospective views towards clinical applications. First, we focus on the technical challenges of isolating and recovering single CTCs and then explore different WGA methodologies and recent developments which have been utilized to amplify single cell genomes for further downstream analysis. Lastly, we list a portfolio of CTC studies which employ WGA and single-cell analysis for genetic heterogeneity and biomarker detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanzila Khan
- School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia; (T.K.); (T.M.B.); (W.C.)
- Medical Oncology, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia
- Centre of Circulating Tumor Cells Diagnostics & Research, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia;
| | - Therese M. Becker
- School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia; (T.K.); (T.M.B.); (W.C.)
- Medical Oncology, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia
- Centre of Circulating Tumor Cells Diagnostics & Research, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia;
- South West Sydney Clinical School, University of New South Wales, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia
| | - Joseph W. Po
- Centre of Circulating Tumor Cells Diagnostics & Research, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia;
- Surgical Innovations Unit, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia
| | - Wei Chua
- School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia; (T.K.); (T.M.B.); (W.C.)
- Medical Oncology, Liverpool Hospital, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia
| | - Yafeng Ma
- School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia; (T.K.); (T.M.B.); (W.C.)
- Medical Oncology, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia
- Centre of Circulating Tumor Cells Diagnostics & Research, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia;
- South West Sydney Clinical School, University of New South Wales, Liverpool, NSW 2170, Australia
- Correspondence:
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Copy number alterations analysis of primary tumor tissue and circulating tumor cells from patients with early-stage triple negative breast cancer. Sci Rep 2022; 12:1470. [PMID: 35087134 PMCID: PMC8795239 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-05502-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2021] [Accepted: 01/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is characterized by clinical aggressiveness, lack of recognized target therapy, and a dismal patient prognosis. Several studies addressed genomic changes occurring during neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) focusing on somatic variants, but without including copy number alterations (CNAs). We analyzed CNA profiles of 31 TNBC primary tumor samples before and after NAC and of 35 single circulating tumor cells (CTCs) collected prior, during and after treatment by using next-generation sequencing targeted profile and low-pass whole genome sequencing, respectively. In pre-treatment tissue samples, the most common gains occurred on chromosomes 1, 2 and 8, and SOX11 and MYC resulted the most altered genes. Notably, amplification of MSH2 (4/4 versus 0/12, p < 0.01) and PRDM1 and deletion of PAX3 (4/4 versus 1/12, p < 0.01) significantly characterized primary tumors of patients with pathological complete response. All patients with paired pre- and post-NAC samples reported a change in post-treatment CNAs compared to baseline, despite they showed at least one common alteration. CNAs detected after treatment involved genes within druggable pathways such as EGFR, cell cycle process and Ras signaling. In two patients, CTCs shared more alterations with residual rather than primary tumor involving genes such as MYC, BCL6, SOX2, FGFR4. The phylogenetic analysis of CTCs within a single patient revealed NAC impact on tumor evolution, suggesting a selection of driver events under treatment pressure. In conclusion, our data showed how chemoresistance might arise early from treatment-induced selection of clones already present in the primary tumor, and that the characterization of CNAs on single CTCs informs on cancer evolution and potential druggable targets.
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