In Vitro Spectroscopy-Based Profiling of Urothelial Carcinoma: A Fourier Transform Infrared and Raman Imaging Study

Simple Summary The mortality and recurrence associated with urothelial carcinoma are high. High heterogeneity makes it hard to detect with currently available methods such as cytology and histology. We propose here vibrational spectroscopic imaging as an additional diagnostic tool for the classification of bladder cancer. Our study revealed that chemism-induced spectroscopic features of the cancer cells of various stages and invasiveness were specifically detected. Markers of bladder cancer cells remain elusive, which is a major cause of the low recognition of this malignant neoplasm and its recurrence. This implies an urgent need for additional diagnostic tools which are based on the identification of the chemism of bladder cancer. In this study, we employed label-free techniques of molecular imaging-Fourier Transform Infrared and Raman spectroscopic imaging-to investigate bladder cancer cell lines of various invasiveness (T24a, T24p, HT-1376, and J82). The urothelial HCV-29 cell line was the healthy control. Specific biomolecules discriminated spatial distribution of the nucleus and cytoplasm and indicated the presence of lipid bodies and graininess in some cell lines. The most prominent discriminators are the total content of lipids and sugar moieties as well as the presence of glycogen and other carbohydrates, un/saturated lipids, cytochromes, and a level of S-S bridges in proteins. The combination of the obtained hyperspectral database and chemometric methods showed a clear differentiation of each cell line at the level of the nuclei and cytoplasm and pointed out spectral signals which differentiated bladder cancer cells. Registered spectral markers correlated with biochemical composition changes can be associated with pathogenesis and potentially used for the diagnosis of bladder cancer and response to experimental therapies.

Automated summary

Bladder cancer has high mortality and recurrence rates, making it a challenge to detect with current methods. Vibrational spectroscopic imaging is proposed as a new diagnostic tool for classification, revealing specific spectroscopic features of cancer cells at different stages and invasiveness. The lack of specific markers for bladder cancer cells highlights the need for additional diagnostic tools based on the identification of their chemical properties.