Mahal Collaboration in Nature Medicine

Posted: 1/23/12

NYU Chemistry Professor Lara Mahal and her colleagues at the Medical Research Council have identified changes in the patterns of sugar molecules that line pre-cancerous cells in the esophagus, a condition called Barrett’s dysplasia, making it much easier to detect and remove these cells before they develop into esophageal cancer. These findings, reported in the journal Nature Medicine (2012 doi:10.1038/nm.2616), have important implications for patients and may help to monitor their condition and prevent the development of cancer.

The Nature Medicine paper, entitled "Molecular imaging using fluorescent lectins permits rapid endoscopic identification of dysplasia in Barrett's esophagus," was a collaborative effort, including work by NYU technician Wiliam S. Eng. The exciting findings are being covered by many science and medical research publications, including Futurity and Science Daily,  and are featured on the New York University Research website.  Check any of these for a complete list of authors and their respective contributions to the project.

Abstract:
Barrett's esophagus is an example of a pre-invasive state, for which current endoscopic surveillance methods to detect dysplasia are time consuming and inadequate. The prognosis of cancer arising in Barrett's esophagus is improved by early detection at the stage of mucosal carcinoma or high-grade dysplasia. Molecular imaging methods could revolutionize the detection of dysplasia, provided they permit a wide field of view and highlight abnormalities in real time. We show here that cell-surface glycans are altered in the progression from Barrett's esophagus to adenocarcinoma and lead to specific changes in lectin binding patterns. We chose wheat germ agglutinin as a candidate lectin with clinical potential. The binding of wheat germ agglutinin to human tissue was determined to be specific, and we validated this specific binding by successful endoscopic visualization of high-grade dysplastic lesions, which were not detectable by conventional endoscopy, with a high signal-to-background ratio of over 5.