Cancer Glycomics Analysis Service

Creative Biolabs is a leading service provider that focuses on glycomics research. Based on our advanced platforms and extensive experience, now we can provide a series of cancer glycomics analysis services for our clients all over the world.

Introduction of Cancer and Glycomics

The research of the human genome, transcriptome, proteome, and epigenome has greatly promoted discoveries in biomedical science and the understanding of human disease processes. The developed technologies provide great opportunities and methods for cancer glycomics analysis. The term glycomics refers to the wide research of glycans or complex carbohydrates, in the form of oligosaccharide polymers, N- and O-linked glycoproteins, glycolipids, and proteoglycans. And glycosylation is the process that these sugars are added to protein or lipid carriers.

Studies have shown that changes in glycosylation are closely related to the development and progression of cancer, such as brain, breast, liver, lung, ovarian, pancreatic, prostate, etc.

Emerging Areas for Glycomics Research

• The altered mechanisms of regulation of the UDP-N-acetyl-D galactosamine.
• miRNA regulation of glycosyltransferase activity.
• Glycosylation in cancer exosomes/microvesicles.
• Glycan metabolism in the tumor environment and the hexosamine biosynthetic pathway have emerged as a key focal point in this process.

Fig.1 Common glycoconjugates in mammalian cells.^{1, 3}

Relation Between Glycosylation and Cancer

Glycosylation plays an important role in normal physiological functions in humans, including cell motility, cell-cell adhesion, inflammation, signal transduction, pathogen-host interactions, as well as viral entry. In this case, abnormal glycosylation in any of these processes may lead to tumors and cancers, and the altered glycan associated with a special cancer type would make this glycan a potential biomarker. By incorporating a tumor-specific glycoform, the specificity and sensitivity of glycoprotein cancer biomarkers can be improved.

Technologies for Cancer Glycomics Analysis

In order to better study cancer glycomics, the latest cutting-edge technologies have been developed to discover new cancer biomarkers and therapeutic targets, and different comprehensive cancer omics strategies have been proposed.

• High-resolution mass spectrometry that can be used to determine anomeric linkage and sugar composition.
• MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry is a common method for clinical sample analysis of glycans.

Creative Biolabs has been a long-term expert in the field of glycomics research. As a pioneer and the undisrupted global leader in cancer glycomics analysis, we offer a variety of solutions to improve your productivity and streamline your research processes. If you are interested in our products or services, please do not hesitate to contact us for more detailed information.

Published data

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common type of cancer. Current screening methods for CRC include colonoscopy, fecal occult blood testing, and barium enema. However, these screening methods are invasive, expensive, or insensitive, which can lead to reduced patient compliance. There is an urgent need to develop a new generation of screening methods that are more sensitive and less invasive to improve patient compliance, such as detecting molecular biomarkers from blood or tissue samples. This article focuses on the progress of mass spectrometry (MS)-based N-glycomics in the field of CRC. Before N-glycomics analysis, N-glycans need to be released from glycoproteins by chemical or enzymatic methods. Hydrazinolysis is the preferred chemical method for releasing sugars. Peptide-N-glycosidase F (PNGase F) is one of the commonly used enzymes, which can cleave most N-glycans but cannot cleave core α1,3-fucosylated sugars. Endoglycosidase H (Endo-H) specifically cleaves high-mannose and mixed N-glycans but does not cleave complex sugars. Subsequently, the released N-glycans can be derivatized by a simple reduction step, with permethylation being a widely used derivatization method. Before MS analysis of the sample, considering the complex structure and heterogeneity of N-glycans, appropriate methods such as liquid chromatography (LC) and capillary electrophoresis (CE) must be used to separate the sugars for a more comprehensive structural characterization. The combination of LC and MS has been widely applied in glycomics analysis. Its combination has accelerated the development of the glycomics field and is expected to promote the discovery of new biomarkers, thereby improving the effectiveness of disease diagnosis and treatment.

Fig.2 MS fragmentation patterns of N-glycans in different ion modes.^{2, 3}

FAQs

Q1: How is MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry applied in the analysis of clinical samples?

A1: MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry is utilized for high-throughput and sensitive analysis of glycan structures in clinical samples, including tissue biopsies, serum, and other bodily fluids. This method is valuable for identifying and analyzing cancer-associated glycans, providing critical information for biomarker discovery.

Q2: What does the process of glycan profiling in a cancer glycomics analysis project involve?

A2: The process of glycan profiling typically involves several steps: sample collection and preparation, glycan release and purification, derivatization if necessary, and analysis using high-resolution mass spectrometry or MALDI-TOF MS. Data interpretation and validation against known glycan databases are also crucial steps in deriving significant insights.

Q3: What specific types of cancer biomarkers can be identified through your glycomics analysis services?

A3: Through our glycomics analysis services, we can identify a variety of cancer biomarkers, including altered N-linked and O-linked glycoproteins, glycolipids, and tumor-associated glycans such as sialyl Lewis X, and Tn antigen. These biomarkers are crucial for the early diagnosis, prognosis, and potential therapeutic targeting of different cancer types.

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References

1. Guo, Yuna, et al. "Cancer glycomics offers potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets in the framework of 3P medicine." Frontiers in endocrinology 13 (2022): 970489.
2. Sethi, Manveen K., and Susan Fanayan. "Mass spectrometry-based N-glycomics of colorectal cancer." International journal of molecular sciences 16.12 (2015): 29278-29304.
3. Distributed under Open Access license CC BY 4.0, without modification.

Related Services:

• Tumor-associated Glycan Detection
• Cancer Specific Glycosyltransferase Gene Expression Profiling
• Technologies for Glyco-code Based Diagnostics