Rochester, Minnesota. — The live breast biobank at Mayo Clinic helps researchers identify ways that may increase the risk of breast cancer for carriers of certain genes.
For example, in a recent study , the biobank proved invaluable in understanding the effect of the BRCA1 gene on the increased risk of breast cancer in women who carry the gene. The research team used the biobank samples to validate their findings, says Nagarajan Kannan, PhD , director of the Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Laboratory at Mayo Clinic.
To understand how the Living Breast Biobank supported this study, it is necessary to understand its overarching purpose and what makes it unique.
“In 2016, with the support of many clinical and research colleagues, I established this biobank to collect tissue from women, in particular, with a germline mutation, who underwent breast surgery at Mayo Clinic Rochester,” says Dr. Kanaan.
He adds that the biobank currently collects samples across Mayo Clinic sites and includes any gene associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.
At the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, samples also include breast tissue from plastic surgeries, including live male breast tissue.
“Access to live male breast tissue to study the origin of male breast cancer was a huge challenge, and we were able to solve it,” says Dr. Kanaan. “Male breast cancer occurs in 1 in 100 cases, but male mammary gland and male breast cancer “They haven’t been studied. We want to change this with the unique resource we’ve developed.”
Breast samples for biobanking are collected on the day the patient undergoes surgery. It is then brought to the CPU in Dr. Kanan’s lab.
“It’s a very laborious process,” he says. “Each sample is collected and processed fresh, and then it takes a day and a half to produce what we call ‘epithelial stem cell-rich tissue organoids’. These are tissue units that still contain self-renewing stem cells. Then they are cryopreserved and then “They are placed in the bank. Samples can be damaged during the processing steps due to minor errors. Therefore, we have improved our methodology quite a bit, which has simplified the process.”
Numerous research fellows, interns, and technicians have collectively contributed over 10,000 man-hours to the procurement, processing, and preservation of these stem cell-enriched samples.
The specialization in isolating growth in healthy stem cells is the reason Dr. Kanaan wanted to add the word “live” in the name of the biobank. Even tissue preserved from autopsies a few days after death generates living stem cells. The death of the patient does not extinguish the stem and progenitor cells in the breast tissue, as these cells serve as a vital resource for research.
Because of its focus, the live breast biobank fills a niche research gap.
“We focus on tissues that have not metastasized because we want to understand the cellular vulnerabilities that increase breast cancer risk,” says Dr. Kanaan. “Our focus is on understanding the early stages of breast cancer development that are not usually found in the clinic.”
Currently, the biobank contains approximately 500 patient samples. Each one includes a questionnaire of about 150 questions from participating patients. This questionnaire provides information about other factors that may contribute to a higher risk
Cancer, such as: diet, lifestyle, genetics, family and medical history.
More information , visit the Mayo Clinic Laboratories website .
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Media contact: Susan Ferguson, Mayo Clinic Contact , newsbureau@mayo.edu
