ESCGO+ methods

In our research we use a wide spectrum of methods including genomics, radiomics, radiogenomics and biostatistical analysis.

MAIN GENETIC & MOLECULAR METHODS

Genomic analysis is the identification, measurement or comparison of genomic features such as DNA sequence, structural variation, gene expression, or regulatory and functional element annotation at a genomic scale. Methods for genomic analysis typically require high-throughput sequencing or microarray hybridization and bioinformatics.

In our work we use next methods:

• Real-time PCR
• Single-cell PCR
• RNA-interference
• High-melting resolution and other epigenetics methods
• Genetic material extraction from Formalin-Fixed Paraffin-Embedded (FFPE) tissue specimens
• Fluorescence microscopic techniques (determination of apoptosis, necrosis, autophagy etc)
• Enzymes’ activity determination by hydrolysis of specific chromogenic and fluorogenic substrates (activities of proteasome, caspases, cathepsins, elastase, thrombin, plasmin, MMP, etc.)
• Proteinase inhibitor activity determination by hydrolysis of specific chromogenic and fluorogenic substrates (activities of alpha-2-macroglobulin, alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor, antithrombin-III, alpha-2-antiplasmin, calpaine, etc.)
• Immunohistochemical using specific monoclonal FITC-antibodies (immuno-fluorescent method) and specific fluorescent dyes.
• Fractionation of cells and subcellular particles using Percoll, Ficoll
• Animal handling experience (fresh tumor cells inoculation (transplantation) to rat, mice)

MAIN RADIOMICS METHODS

In the field of medicine, radiomics is a method that extracts large amount of features from radiographic medical images using data-characterisation algorithms. The hypothesis of radiomics is that the distinctive imaging features between disease forms may be useful for predicting prognosis and therapeutic response for various conditions, thus providing valuable information for personalized therapy.

We perform in-depth analysis of CT, MRI and USG image data such as:

• Signal intensity of the lesion (mean, median, including skewness, kurtosis etc), ratios
• Indices of pharmacokinetics, perfusion
• Apparent diffusion coefficient of the diffusion-weighted imaging, ratios
• Multiparametric radiomics
• Retrospective and prospective Rad-Path correlation analysis

RADIOGENOMICS (IMAGING GENOMICS)

Since the turn of the twentieth century, radiological images have been used to diagnose disease on a large scale, and has been used successfully to diagnose conditions affecting every organ and tissue type in the body. This is because tissue imaging correlates with tissue pathology. The addition of genomic data in the last twenty years, including DNA microarrays, miRNA, RNA-Seq allows new correlations to be made between cellular genomics and tissue-scale imaging.