Poster Presentations
Day 3, June 12（Fri.） Room P (5F 501+502)
- 3P-40
Advanced Performance in small metabolite imaging in human breast and bladder cancer tissues using a Xevo MRT mass spectrometer
(1Nihon Waters, 2Waters Corp, 3BCM)
oThanai Paxton1, Mark Towers2, Keziah Liebenberg3, Meredith Spradlin3, Lisa Towers2, Joanne Ballantyne2, Livia Eberlin3
Advances in mass spectrometry (MS) imaging now enable improved detection of metabolites linked to key genetic alterations in cancer, supporting better disease stratification and therapy selection. Although metabolites from pathways such as the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) and methionine cycles are challenging to image due to low ionization efficiency and matrix effects, recent innovations in MS instrumentation have enhanced sensitivity and spatial resolution. This work evaluates desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) imaging coupled with a multi reflecting time of flight (TOF) Xevo™ MRT system for analyzing metabolites in human breast and bladder cancer tissues. Breast cancer samples were profiled in negative ion mode with emphasis on TCA cycle metabolites, particularly glutamine and glutamate. Bladder cancer tissues were analyzed in both polarities to target methionine cycle metabolites, including difficult to detect compounds such as MTA and SAM with its low endogenous abundance and susceptibility to degradation. Instrument performance was optimized for small molecules and sensitivity was also increased through slower scan rates and implementation of Enhanced Duty Cycle (EDC) acquisition, which traps and selectively releases ions to boost signal intensity. These combined improvements enabled robust imaging of low abundance metabolites across tumor microenvironments.