Automated local bright feature image analysis of nuclear protein distribution identifies changes in tissue phenotype

The organization of nuclear proteins is linked to cell and tissue phenotypes. When cells arrest proliferation, undergo apoptosis, or differentiate, distribution of nuclear proteins changes. Conversely, forced alteration of the distribution of nuclear proteins modifies cell phenotype. Immunostaining and fluorescence microscopy have been critical for such findings. However, there is increasing need for quantitative analysis of nuclear protein distribution to decipher epigenetic relationships between nuclear structure and cell phenotype and to unravel the mechanisms linking nuclear structure and function. We have developed imaging methods to quantify the distribution of fluorescently stained nuclear protein NuMA in different mammary phenotypes obtained using 3D cell culture. Automated image segmentation of DAPI-stained nuclei was generated to isolate thousands of nuclei from 3D confocal images. Prominent features of fluorescently stained NuMA were detected by using a previously undescribed local bright feature analysis technique, and their normalized spatial density was calculated as a function of the distance from the nuclear perimeter to its center. The results revealed marked changes in the distribution of the density of NuMA bright features when nonneoplastic cells underwent phenotypically normal acinar morphogenesis. Conversely, we did not detect any reorganization of NuMA during formation of tumor nodules by malignant cells. Importantly, the analysis also discriminated proliferating nonneoplastic from proliferating malignant cells, suggesting that these imaging methods are capable of identifying alterations linked not only to the proliferation status but also to the malignant character of cells. We believe that this quantitative analysis will have additional applications for classifying normal and pathological tissues.