Spatial profiling technologies and applications for brain cancers

Introduction Malignant primary and secondary brain tumors pose a major health challenge, and the incidence of these tumors is rising. The brain tumor microenvironment (TME) is highly complex and thought to impact treatment resistance and failure. To enable a greater understanding of the milieu of cells in the brain TME, advances in imaging and sequential profiling of proteins/mRNA have given rise to the field of spatial transcriptomics. These technologies provide a greater depth of understanding of the tissue architecture, cellular and spatial profiles, including cellular activation status, which may provide insights into effective therapies for brain cancers. Areas Covered In this review, we provide an overview of spatial profiling technologies at the forefront in the field and describe the applications for brain cancer. Expert opinion Brain tumors are often resistant to treatment, and display both an immunosuppressive and heterogeneous tumor microenvironment. Next-generation imaging and multi-omics technologies are providing a tool for intricately characterizing their tissue biology. This information will aid in the design of effective therapies and begin to provide an understanding of therapy resistance.

Automated summary

Malignant primary and secondary brain tumors are a major health challenge, with the tumor microenvironment impacting treatment resistance. Spatial transcriptomics technologies are providing a deeper understanding of tissue architecture and cellular profiles, which may lead to insights for effective brain cancer therapies. Next-generation imaging and multi-omics technologies are crucial for characterizing the tissue biology of resistant brain tumors and designing more effective therapies.