Characterization of an Aggregated Three-Dimensional Cell Culture Model by Multimodal Mass Spectrometry Imaging
Lucy Flint, Grégory Hamm, Joseph D. Ready, Stephanie Ling, Catherine J. Duckett, Neil A. Cross, Laura M. Cole, David P. Smith, Richard J. A. Goodwin, Malcolm R. Clench
Abstract
-67) and hypoxia (glucose transporter 1) defined metabolic signaling in the aggregoid model, which complemented the metabolite data. Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma (LA-ICP)-MSI analysis localized endogenous elements including magnesium and copper, further differentiating the hypoxia gradient and validating the protein expression. Obtaining a large amount of molecular information on a complementary nature enabled an in-depth understanding of the biological processes within the novel tumor model. Combining powerful imaging techniques to characterize the aggregated 3D culture highlighted a future methodology with potential applications in cancer research and drug development.