Combined Optical Tweezers and Near IR Spectroscopy for Prostate Cancer Diagnosis
Dr Peter Gardner, The University of Manchester

Dr Peter Gardner and his team at the University of Manchester

Early diagnosis of prostate cancer is a pre-requisite for a good prognosis. The initial state in the diagnosis of prostate cancer usually involves a physical examination and measurement of the concentration of prostate specific antigen (PSA) in blood serum. However, PSA levels can be influenced by factors other than the presence of prostate cancer, which results in a large number of false positive results. Only about 20% of patents with elevated PSA levels are discovered to have cancer, which means that 80% are having to unnecessarily undergo a biopsy procedure. It is clear therefore, that new diagnostic methods are urgently required.

The mechanical properties of a eukaryotic cell are dictated by the properties of the cytoskeleton, an intricate array of actin filaments, microtubules and other more flexible polymer filaments that act as a responsive internal scaffolding. The mechanical properties of the cytoskeleton can alter with cell type and function. For example the cytoskeleton of malignant cells is considerably less rigid than that of non-malignant cells. Pioneering work by Jochen Guck's group at the University of Leipzig has shown that cells trapped in an optical tweezer type system (known as an optical stretcher) can be made to deform. Furthermore, breast cancer cells (MCF-7) appear to deform more than healthy cells (MCF-10) and metastatic cancer cells (modified-MCF-7) deform to an even greater extent. Thus it would appear that the degree of deformity could potentially be used as a marker for metastatic potential.

The aims of this research project are:

• To use near infrared spectroscopy to correlate the vibrational spectra of single cells with the degree of aggressiveness.
• To correlate the degree of deformation of prostate cancer cells with the aggressiveness of the cells in order to establish a diagnostic marker for metastatic potential.
• To determine the sensitivity and specificity of the combined techniques of optical deformation and near infrared spectroscopy for the diagnosis of prostate cancer from urine samples.
• To compare the degree of deformation with cancer cell aggressiveness as measured in the Gleason scale.
  
  See the article published in 'Popular Science', January 2008 regarding this project
  
  See the aricle published in 'The Telegraph', February 2008 regarding this project
  
  Project commenced
  September 2005
  
  Length of project
  3 years
  
  Amount Supported
  £78,624