Seminar: Discovering Elemental Fingerprints of Cell Death in Cancer Cells

Student: Neha Nasir

Supervisors: Dr. Ana Pejovic-Milic and Dr. Raffi Karshafian

Abstract

This research investigates changes in elemental concentration associated with stressorinduced cell death in PC-3 cancer cells. The limited work studying ionic concentration changes often restricts their analysis to selective elements, limiting the correlation between the specific stressor inducing cell death and changes in multiple ionic concentrations at trace amounts as a result of cell death. Accordingly, this study seeks to qualify and quantify multi-elemental changes, by monitoring their concentrations upon inducing cell death via varying stressors.

Elemental changes will be analyzed using Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence (TXRF), a powerful analytical technique known for its capability to monitor multi-elemental trace concentrations. Validation of cell death will be conducted through flow cytometry, a versatile technique enabling the identification and quantification of distinct cell populations. By combining TXRF and flow cytometry, this research provides a comprehensive approach to determining elemental fingerprints associated with cell death in PC-3 cells. 

The anticipated results include variations in the concentrations of K, Cl, Na, Ca, P, and Mg, along with the emergence of novel elemental fingerprints due to the unique methodology employed in this study. The findings of this fundamental scientific project are expected to contribute valuable insights into the role of ionic concentration changes in cell death, offering potential implications for countless applications.