Molecularly guided digital spatial profiling for multiplexed analysis of gene expression with spatial and single cell resolution - Presented at : ABRF 2020

The tumor microenvironment (TME) is a network of complex interactions between the tumor and surrounding immune and non-immune cells. Immunotherapies including immune checkpoint blockade have demonstrated therapeutic efficacy and durable responses for several tumor types, however most patients are nonresponsive or develop resistance to such immunotherapies. To identify new predictive biomarkers to better stratify patients, it is essential to comprehensively characterize the immune cells within the TME at the molecular level. Traditional methods to assess gene expression, such as sequencing, PCR, immunohistochemistry, and in situ hybridization (ISH) either lack information on spatial positioning or sensitivity/specificity. To address this, we have developed a novel workflow combining the single molecule and single cell visualization capabilities of the RNAscope™ ISH assay with the highly multiplexed spatial profiling capabilities of the GeoMx™ Digital Spatial Profiler (DSP) RNA assays.