Aim: Renal cell carcinoma is a very aggressive and often fatal disease for which there are no specific biomarkers found to date. The purpose of work was to find substances that differentiate the cancerous and healthy tissue by using laser desorption/ionization MS imaging combined with silver nanoparticle-enhanced target.
Results: Ion images and comparative analysis of spectra revealed differences in intensities for several metabolites, for which their biochemical properties were discussed. Statistical analysis allowed to distinguish healthy and cancer tissue without the involvement of a pathologist.
Conclusion: Laser desorption/ionization MS imaging technology combined with silver nanoparticle-enhanced target enabled rapid visualization of the differences between the clear cell renal cell carcinoma and the healthy part of the kidney tissue.
Keywords: MS imaging; kidney cancer; laser desorption/ionization; renal cell carcinoma; silver nanoparticles.