2023-12-13 15:03:14
In the future, a little saliva may be enough to detect incipient cancer. This is what researchers at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden are aiming for, who have developed a way to interpret the changes in sugar molecules that occur in tumor cells. A method that also ‘enlists’ Artificial Intelligence as an ally to enhance analysis. Scientists are targeting glycans, a type of sugar molecule structure that is linked to proteins in our cells.
The structure of the glycan determines the function of the protein, and it has long been known that changes in this structure can indicate inflammation or disease. Now researchers at the Swedish university have developed a way to distinguish different types of structural changes in glycans, and this activity could provide a precise answer to what changes in the presence of a specific disease. “We analyzed data from approximately 220 patients with 11 different diagnosed tumors and identified differences in glycan substructure depending on the type of cancer – explains Daniel Bojar, lead author of the study published in ‘Cell Reports Methods’ – We were able to find these connections by running our newly developed, AI-enhanced method across large amounts of data.”
The scientist looks to the future: “I think we may be able to perform clinical tests on human samples within 4-5 years,” says Bojar.
There are also other research groups studying glycan substructures in search of so-called ‘biomarkers’ capable of describing what is wrong. This often involves the use of statistical tests using mass spectroscopy to find out whether the level of individual sugars is significantly higher or lower in cancer. However, these tests, experts point out, have too low sensitivity and are not reliable because the different sugars are structurally related and therefore not independent of each other. Bojar’s research team’s method takes these issues into account and can find patterns in datasets where other systems fail, experts say. “We can count on our results, they are statistically significant – assures Bojar – If we know what we are looking for, it is easier to find the correct result. Now we will take these biomarkers and develop testing methods”.
During the fall, the team received funding from the Lundberg Foundation to purchase a state-of-the-art mass spectrometer. The tool will serve as an artificial intelligence platform to support researchers in studying glycans, for example in lung cancer samples. Mission: Detect cancer early to increase the chances of recovery. “We want to develop a reliable and rapid analytical method to detect cancer, and even the type of cancer, through a blood or saliva sample.”
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