2. Academic Validation
  3. Establishment of a new method for detection of TROP2-positive circulating tumor cells in breast cancer

Establishment of a new method for detection of TROP2-positive circulating tumor cells in breast cancer

  • BMC Cancer. 2025 Nov 21;25(1):1797. doi: 10.1186/s12885-025-14184-y.
Anqi Wang # 1 2 3,  Pingping Zeng # 1 2,  Tianyi Ma # 1 2,  Haoyuan Shi # 1 2,  Ruifang Li 2 4,  Hang Xu 2 5,  Yinghua Feng 2 5,  Qiongming Liu 6,  Mengting Wang 6,  Tingmei Chen 7,  Zhiyuan Hu 8 9 10 11,  Rixiong Wang 12,  Ying Zhou 13 14,  Xiaopeng Hao 15
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Fujian Key Laboratory of Translational Research in Cancer and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China.
  • 2 CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, China.
  • 3 The First Affiliated Hospital, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China.
  • 4 Department of Epidemiology, Cancer Hospital Affiliated to Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China.
  • 5 Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
  • 6 Nanopep Biotech Corporation, Beijing, China.
  • 7 Key Laboratory of Clinical Laboratory Diagnostics (Ministry of Education), College of Laboratory Medicine, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
  • 8 Fujian Key Laboratory of Translational Research in Cancer and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 9 CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, China. [email protected].
  • 10 School of Nanoscience and Technology, Sino-Danish College, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. [email protected].
  • 11 School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, China. [email protected].
  • 12 The First Affiliated Hospital, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 13 Fujian Key Laboratory of Translational Research in Cancer and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 14 CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, China. [email protected].
  • 15 Department of General Surgery, First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China. [email protected].
  • # Contributed equally.
PMID: 41272532 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-025-14184-y
Abstract

Trophoblast cell surface antigen 2 (TROP2) overexpression has been demonstrated in several tumor types, including breast Cancer (BC). Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) offer a non-invasive, dynamic and real-time detection method. The detection of TROP2 expression in CTCs is significant for predicting BC progression, prognosis and the efficacy of targeted therapy. A quantitative analysis method for TROP2 of CTCs was established using our established TUMORFISHER detection platform based on epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), and a new magnetic nanoparticle with TROP2 as the trapping target was developed, named TROP2@MNPs. The developed quantitative analysis of TROP2 was an effective method for accurately identifying the expression of TROP2 in BC cells and CTCs from BC patients, which was consistent with the data obtained by immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis. The established TROP2@MNPs could specifically capture TROP2-positive BC cells, and the capture efficiency was closely related to the expression of TROP2 in CTCs. Notably, the TROP2-based enrichment strategy was found to capture TROP2-expressing CTCs that were missed by the EpCAM-based enrichment strategy. The TROP2-targeting CTC capture platform, TROP2@MNPs, could serve as a liquid biopsy of TROP2 expression in BC patients, providing an important reference for further research on CTC-related diagnosis and individualised treatment employing TROP2-targeting drugs.

Keywords

Breast cancer; Circulating tumor cell; Liquid biopsy; Magnetic nanoparticle; TROP2.

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