How to Get Started With Spatial Biology

Listicle 1 How to Get Started with Spatial Biology Spatial biology is a cutting-edge interdisciplinary field at the forefront of biological research, seamlessly merging traditional molecular biology techniques with advanced spatial analysis methods. Spatial biology technologies preserve the native context of biological samples, allowing for a deeper understanding of cellular organization, interactions and localized functions. In this way, spatial biology offers insights that transcend the limitations of traditional molecular studies and paves the way for innovative applications in various fields. In this guide, Dr. Thomas Campbell, Associate Director of Product Management at Canopy Biosciences, shares some fundamental concepts about spatial biology. He also explains how Canopy Biosciences instruments and services can help researchers accelerate their spatial biology studies. Spatial biology in a nutshell Spatial biology is an exciting, growing field. Historically, genomic and transcriptomic studies have been performed using bulk analysis methods where a large number of analytes can be detected and quantified in the sample. However, with this type of analysis, it is not possible to attribute analytes to particular cells or cell types. As technology has advanced, single-cell analysis has been made possible. Now, specific expression levels can be attributed to specific cells. But, in traditional single-cell analyses, there is no information about the spatial context of these single cells and how they interact with one another. Spatial biology allows researchers to interrogate a high number of markers with single-cell precision while maintaining the intact spatial distribution within the sample. In this way, it is possible to investigate how cells interact within tissues and uncover new biological findings. Applications of spatial biology Some of the most popular applications of spatial biology are oncology and neurobiology. For example, spatial tools can be helpful to profile immune cell populations and understand how they interact with tumor cells, as well as to characterize the tumor microenvironment. This is important because some studies showed that predictive clinical outcomes not only depend on the abundance of immune cells but also on how well those immune cells infiltrate a tumor. It is possible to quantify the relative abundance of different immune cell populations with single-cell technologies; however, considering spatial context is essential to understanding how cells regularly infiltrate tumors, which may be more predictive of clinical outcomes. Watch the complete Teach Me in 10 episode with Thomas Campbell here. HOW TO GET STARTED WITH SPATIAL BIOLOGY 2 Listicle Next-generation ChipCytometry technology In the past couple of years, several different platforms and technologies have been commercialized to support spatial biology research. Some platforms focus on transcriptomic analysis, while others are more focused on protein detection. The different commercial options also differ in their spatial resolution. The ChipCytometry CellScapeTM platform is an end-to-end solution for highly multiplexed spatial omics. It combines high-quality immunofluorescence imaging with advanced image analysis software, enabling accurate and precise quantification of analytes with single-cell resolution. The instrument has the best-in-class optical resolution, allowing researchers to identify individual cells with high fidelity. This is combined with high dynamic range imaging, enabling the generation of images with an eight-long dynamic range – exceeding the two- to three-long expression ranges offered by most commercial platforms. A broad dynamic range is necessary to detect the high expressors, the low expressors and quantify those simultaneously within the same sample. This is one of the main differences between the CellScape platform and other platforms on the market. Another difference is assay flexibility. Canopy Biosciences offers several pre-validated assay kits, which are optimized for some core immune markers. Most users have particular markers that are very specific to their research question. But with the CellScape platform, it is possible to validate any type of marker using an open-source, antibody-based detection from a variety of different commercial vendors. This lowers the barrier for assay validation and assay customization and gives users maximum flexibility. Finally, another important feature of the CellScape platform is its high throughput. This allows researchers to ask big questions, analyze large cohorts and generate a large dataset in a short amount of time. How to get started? Finding collaborators or partners is a great way to get started in the field. Canopy Biosciences offers CRO services to help customers generate pilot-scale proof of principle studies. This gives researchers an idea of the power of the platform and shows what types of research they can do with these spatial technologies. Partnership with a CRO can help researchers define the scope of their work and how to incorporate spatial analyses into their broader research questions. Learn more about how to get started with spatial biology. Dr. Thomas Campbell is Associate Director of Product Management at Canopy Biosciences – A Bruker Company, focused on the development of tools to advance spatial biology research and applications. Thomas received a PhD in chemistry from Saint Louis University (Missouri, USA). Prior to his time at Canopy Biosciences, he worked as a strategy consultant at Kantar Health where he advised pharmaceutical and biotech companies with a focus on commercial strategy for oncology and specialty therapeutics. Sponsored by