Lymphangiogenesis and Lymph Node Metastasis Analysis

Tumor lymphangiogenesis, the formation of new lymphatic vessels within the tumor microenvironment, is a key driver of lymphatic metastasis. Our team of experts at Alfa Cytology is at the forefront of this research, leveraging cutting-edge technologies and a deep understanding of tumor biology to unravel the intricate interplay between the lymphatic system and cancer progression.

Introduction

The rapid growth of malignant tumors depends on adequate blood supply, and their distant metastasis is through blood and lymphatic fluid. Lymphatic metastasis is an important route of tumor metastasis and an important basis for judging prognosis. Therefore, the research on the generation of tumor microvascular system and its biological behavior with tumor has been paid much attention, among which the research on tumor angiogenesis has started early and achieved many results, but the research on tumor lymphatic vasculature generation has progressed relatively slowly, and the lack of reliable lymphatic vasculature endothelial markers is one of the important reasons. In recent years, with the in-depth study of tissue embryos, some lymphatic vascular-specific markers have been discovered one after another, which has enabled this field to be developed.

With the discovery of lymphangiogenic factors and many lymphatic duct-specific markers, the study of tumor neoplastic lymphatic duct regulation and lymphatic metastasis mechanism has been further developed. A large number of studies have found that there are new lymphatic vessels in malignant tumors and peritumor tissues, and the density of new lymphatic vessels and the expression intensity of lymphatic vessel markers are closely related to lymph node metastasis, which provides an important research avenue to reveal the mechanism of lymphatic metastasis in malignant tumors and develop lymphatic vessel-targeted therapy.

Our Services

It was found that certain human tumors can form neoplastic lymphatic vessels, and tumor-associated lymphatic vessels are necessary for lymph node metastasis. Using animal models, lymphangiogenesis can be inhibited by blocking vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 3 (VEGFR3) signaling, or lymph node metastasis of cancer cells can be inhibited by neutralizing chemokines (e.g., SLC/CCL21). The mechanism of lymph node metastasis is not well understood, and it is unlikely to be through a single pathway of the VEGFR3 signaling system, but may involve multiple regulatory mechanisms as well as tumor angiogenesis. As the mechanisms of tumor lymphangiogenesis and metastasis become better understood, it is expected that anti-lymphangiogenesis will bring new hope to the treatment of tumors. Alfa Cytology has developed several technologies to provide solutions for the study of tumor lymphangiogenesis and lymph node metastasis, thus providing guidance for the administration of drugs and therapeutic approaches for clinical oncology.

Key Technologies

Traditional imaging methods are still very challenging in assessing the metastatic status of tumor lymph nodes. Radiomics, as a new technique for high-throughput feature extraction, can extract deep-level information from images and be used to build diagnostic, prognostic and predictive models, and is widely used in clinical treatment and research. Currently, imaging histology based on MRI, ultrasound and mammography has gradually started to be applied to the prediction of tumor lymph node metastasis, which has become a hot topic of academic research.

Flow cytometry is a technique for quantitative analysis and sorting of single cells using flow cytometry, which determines intracellular DNA with a minimum coefficient of variation, typically 1%-2%.

Each tumor cell has its own specific tumor-associated antigens, which can be expressed or lost in regular or excessive amounts. Immunohistochemical techniques are used to investigate the micro-metastasis of tumor lymph nodes from a cytological point of view, and the presence of tumor lymph nodes can be confirmed by applying relevant antigens in tissues, blood and body fluids for labeling.

Serial sectioning was one of the first methods used to detect micro-metastases in lymph nodes, and the detection rate of lymph node metastases could be increased by 14%-24% by serial sectioning of lymph nodes that were negative in conventional tests.

Alfa Cytology is committed to supporting scientists in making breakthrough scientific discoveries and developing new applications to accelerate new drug discovery and scientific diagnosis and treatment. Our high-performance scientific instruments and high-value solutions enable scientists to explore the mysteries of life at the tumor microenvironment level. Please tell us your project requirements, and we will provide you with a full service from solution to report. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

For research use only.