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High-plex spatial RNA profiling reveals cell type-specific biomarker expression in early-stage melanoma
- Kiuru, Maija;
- Kriner, Michelle;
- Wong, Samantha;
- Zhu, Guannan;
- Terrell, Jessica;
- Li, Qian;
- Hoang, Margaret;
- Beechem, Joseph;
- McPherson, John
Abstract
• Melanoma, the deadliest of the common skin cancers, develops through a gradual accumulation of mutations and overcomes environmental regulation
• Markers of early melanoma evolution and predictors of durable treatment response remain largely undiscovered
• Spatially resolved techniques are likely to outperform bulk molecular profiling for discovery of early stage and predictive biomarkers
• Previous studies revealed the importance of keratinocyte-derived growth factors and cell adhesion molecules in limiting melanocyte proliferation and elucidated mechanisms by which malignant melanocytes escape this regulation
• However, prior studies did not capture the spatial element of melanocyte-keratinocyte interactions in situ in patient-derived primary melanomas and benign melanocytic tumors