title: A Method for Detecting Circulating Tumor Cells Based on the Measurement of Single-Cell Metabolism in Droplet-Based Microfluidics.
abstract: The number of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in blood is strongly correlated with the progress of metastatic cancer. Current methods to detect CTCs are based on immunostaining or discrimination of physical properties. Herein, a label-free method is presented exploiting the abnormal metabolic behavior of cancer cells. A single-cell analysis technique is used to measure the secretion of acid from individual living tumor cells compartmentalized in microfluidically prepared, monodisperse, picoliter (pL) droplets. As few as 10 tumor cells can be detected in a background of 200 000 white blood cells and proof-of-concept data is shown on the detection of CTCs in the blood of metastatic patients.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Nanotechnology, University of Trieste, Via Valerio 2, Trieste, Italy. fabio.delben@phd.units.it.|Dept. of Clinical Pathology, CRO Aviano, Via F. Gallini 2, 33081, Aviano, PN, Italy. fabio.delben@phd.units.it.
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Del Ben
authors.affiliation: Institute of Anatomic Pathology, Dept. of Medical and Biological Sciences, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Udine, 33100, Udine, Italy.
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Turetta
authors.affiliation: Radboud University, Institute for Molecules and Materials, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Giorgia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Celetti
authors.affiliation: Radboud University, Institute for Molecules and Materials, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Aigars
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Piruska
authors.affiliation: Institute of Anatomic Pathology, Dept. of Medical and Biological Sciences, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Udine, 33100, Udine, Italy.
authors.forename: Michela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bulfoni
authors.affiliation: Institute of Anatomic Pathology, Dept. of Medical and Biological Sciences, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Udine, 33100, Udine, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cesselli
authors.affiliation: Radboud University, Institute for Molecules and Materials, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. w.huck@science.ru.nl.
authors.forename: Wilhelm T S
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Huck
authors.affiliation: Institute of Anatomic Pathology, Dept. of Medical and Biological Sciences, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Udine, 33100, Udine, Italy. gscoles@princeton.edu.
authors.forename: Giacinto
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Scoles
mesh_terms: D001578:Benzopyrans / Q000737:chemistry; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D066292:Lipid Droplets / Q000737:chemistry*; D044085:Microfluidics / Q000379:methods*; D009360:Neoplastic Cells, Circulating / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D059010:Single-Cell Analysis; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence
chemical_list: D001578:Benzopyrans; C063917:SNARF dye
keywords: cancer; circulating tumor cells; metabolism; microfluidics; picodroplets