Microscopy & Imaging
The latest Business updates from the science industry
by Heather Hobbs
Breakthrough Ultrasound Methods point to Earlier Diagnosis
A new technique using super-resolution ultrasound methods for scanning whole organs has been discovered by a research team at the Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. The technique, found to have improved resolution by 5-10 times compared to standard ultrasound images, demonstrated for the fi rst time the detection of prostate cancer by mapping the blood vessels that surround it and showing a different pattern to that of normal tissue. The discovery has the potential for earlier cancer diagnoses, allowing medical staff to more effectively target treatments to any malignant tissue.
The enhanced images utilise existing clinical two-dimensional (2D) ultrasound equipment and standard Contrast Enhanced Ultrasound (CEUS) modes. This means hospitals won’t be required to invest in new equipment and no new hardware technology needs to be developed. The aim is to start human trials using the new technique later in 2019. Prostate patients will be the fi rst to benefi t from the enhanced imaging.
The breakthrough uses adaptive optics, fi rst applied in astronomy and then (under STFC funding) was successfully adapted for use in optical microscopy, leading to the Heriot-Watt team developing micrometric resolution ultrasound imaging.
Lead researcher Dr Vassilis Sboros explained: “Ultrasound imaging is an indispensable tool in medical diagnosis, primarily due to its cost-effectiveness and unique real-time capability. However, the limitations of current ultrasound images mean more expensive techniques like MRI are often employed for diagnosis and treatment.
“MRI doesn’t provide clinicians with more detail but it has generally provided better results than other methods. However, in the prostate for example, biopsy has to be performed as a separate procedure which is more expensive for the hospital and can be both disruptive and distressing for the patient.
“Our new technique has the advantage that it can be done as an adjunct to the ultrasound examination which allows the biopsy to be integrated into it. Due to the super-resolution capability of the image created, we anticipate that the ability of the medical staff to pinpoint, diagnose and treat a range of cancers will be greatly enhanced.”
Published in the Journal of Investigative Radiology
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Enhanced image using microbubble technique. (Credit: Heriot-Watt University)
Dr Mairead Butler and Dr Weiping examine ultrasound imagery in the lab. (Credit: Heriot-Watt University)
Cell Movement Discovery Points to Opportunities in Therapeutics
Many cells in our body are constantly changing shape and moving within our tissues; wound healing and the immune system, for example, depend on migrating cells. Uncontrolled cell migration, however, is a hallmark of metastasis during the development of malignant cancers, so cell migration must be very tightly regulated.
The driving force for cell migration is produced by a protein called actin which act as building blocks by polymerising into rod-like fi laments that push the leading edge of the cell forward. The polymerisation of the actin fi laments must be balanced by depolymerisation of the fi laments at the other end.
Scientists at the University of Helsinki, Finland and Institut Jacques Monod, France, have identifi ed a molecular machinery which drives rapid depolymerisation of actin fi laments and recycles the resulting actin monomers for a new round of polymerisation. Two proteins, cyclase-associated protein and cofi lin, work together in this.
“By using X-ray crystallography and computer simulations, we could actually see the atomic details of how these two proteins embrace actin fi laments and disassemble them into their building blocks. One of the most exciting parts of the project was to see under the microscope how actin fi laments suddenly began disappearing when we introduced these two proteins into their vicinity,” said PhD student Tommi Kotila, the lead author of the study from HiLIFE Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki.
In malignant tumours, cells go haywire in their movements, because their migration machinery is not properly controlled. Because, in cancer cells, the regulation of cyclase-associated protein is often defective, the atomistic structure of this machinery may open new avenues for developing therapeutics to inhibit cell migration in cancer.
“This is a great contribution to our understanding of the basic principles of cell migration. It also helps us understand the molecular
basis of the uncontrolled migration of cancer cells,” said academy professor Pekka Lappalainen from the Institute of Biotechnology.
The study was carried out as a collaboration between the laboratories of Pekka Lappalainen and Ilpo Vattulainen at the University of Helsinki, and Guillaume Romet-Lemonne and Antoine Jégou at the Jacques Monod Institute, Paris, France.
Art icle: Kotila T, Wioland H, Enkavi G, Kogan K, Vattulainen I, Jégou A, Romet-Lemonne G, Lappalainen P. Mechanism of synergistic actin fi lament pointed end depolymerization by cyclase-associated protein and cofi lin. Nature Communications (2019). DOI: 10.1038/ s41467-019-13213-2
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Integrated Imaging System Installed in Israel
The fi rst 7T PET/MR preclinical imaging system to be installed in Israel has been sited at The Wohl Institute for Translational Medicine, part of the Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem.
Simultaneous imaging, using both MRI and PET imaging at the same time, is possible as the MRI system, developed by MR Solutions, has a PET module inserted within the bore of the dry magnet. The resulting images are a combination of the two imaging modalities for tracking anatomical, metabolic and molecular changes. Using both PET and MRI simultaneously improves the quality of the research as there is no time delay between the two techniques.
Professor Rinat Abramovitch, Director of the Wohl Institute with the MR Solutions’ preclinical PET/MR imaging system.
Professor Rinat Abramovitch who is the Director of the Wohl Institute is undertaking therapeutic peptide research for some currently unmet clinical needs in oncology. “We have already made positive fi ndings with our peptide injections to inhibit tumour growth in research subjects. Now using the latest PET-MR
simultaneous imaging this will facilitate more detailed research and better understanding of what is happening at molecular level.”
The Wohl Institute for Translational Medicine was established recently thanks to a generous donation from the Wohl Legacy in the UK. The institute will serve as an infrastructure hub for studying models of human diseases such as cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, metabolic diseases.
It offers technologies enabling visualisation, digitisation, and image analysis spanning from molecular resolution up to in-vivo imaging in order to elucidate the underlying diseases mechanisms and further the development of tailored drugs. Their remit is to translate their fi ndings from the laboratory into the clinic to directly benefi t patients.
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