Biomarker Discovery

ONUMMIX®   →  Biomarker Discovery

Biomarker Discovery

DISCOVERING THE POSSIBILITIES
OF BIOMARKERS

Current researchers aim to use biomarkers in predicting the tumour microenvironment.

  • The objective of immunogenomics is to understand the complex relationship between the host, its immune system, the tumour growth and tumour microenvironment within the host.
  • The complex interplay between the above-mentioned factors maintains a balance between activation and suppression of the antitumor immune responses.
  • Tumour cells are known to infiltrate immune-cells and hijack them to use their cell machinery. Based on the degree of their infiltration, immune cells can be scaled between non-inflamed and inflamed.

USE OF CRISPR-CAS9 GENOME EDITING TECHNOLOGY
IN SCREENING CANCER BIOMARKERS

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR associated nuclease 9 (Cas9) genetic screening is widely used to identify biomarker and therapeutic targets in cancer. Genome-screening using CRISPR-Cas9 could help in identifying aberrant gene alterations prior to treatment, gene expression changes after the treatment and also specifically identify the genes that are associated with the development of drug resistance in cancer. These gene targets can serve as new biomarkers for developing precision therapy.

Thus, CRISPR-Cas9 can help in understanding the molecular basis of cancer types and disease progression. Cancer metastasis and recurrence pose challenge in cancer treatment. CRISPR based technology has helped in identifying TNC as a biomarker for recurrence of lung cancer. TNC is an extracellular matrix (ECM) protein that overexpressed in lung cancer recurrence and metastasis. Similar, a transcription factor, named FOXC, has been identified as a prognostic biomarker in breast cancer.

BIOMARKERS IN IMMUNOGENOMICS