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Author Spotlight: Unlocking Insights into the Immune Cell Landscape of Tumors
Published on: August 18, 2023
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Multiplex Tissue Imaging Harmonization: A Multicenter Experience from CIMAC-CIDC Immuno-Oncology Biomarkers Network
Guray Akturk1, Edwin R Parra2, Evisa Gjini3
1Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, New York.
Summary
Multiplexed IHC assays for cancer immunotherapy trials show reliable quantification of immune cells across different sites and platforms. Harmonized protocols ensure robust, comparable data for biomarker analysis, supporting confidence in CIMAC-CIDC findings.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Oncology
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- The Cancer Immune Monitoring and Analysis Centers - Cancer Immunologic Data Commons (CIMAC-CIDC) network aims to support cancer immunotherapy clinical trials.
- Multiplex immunohistochemistry (IHC) assays are crucial for analyzing immune cell infiltration in tumors as potential biomarkers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the reliability and comparability of multiplex IHC assays across different platforms and laboratories for quantifying tumor-associated immune cells.
- To establish harmonized protocols for consistent data generation within the CIMAC-CIDC network.
Main Methods:
- Comparison of image analysis algorithms, image acquisition platforms, and multiplex staining protocols across three CIMAC sites.
- Utilized multiplexed IHC consecutive staining on single slide (MICSSS) and multiplexed immunofluorescence (mIF) approaches.
- Implemented a multistep harmonization process including independent protocol comparison, integration of laboratory-specific protocols, and validation on independent tissues.
Main Results:
- High intersite Spearman correlation coefficients (r ≥ 0.85) for each marker within and across tissue types were achieved.
- Low average coefficient of variation (≤ 0.1) demonstrated assay consistency.
- Validation step confirmed robust and comparable data generation.
Conclusions:
- Harmonized protocols and platforms enable interchangeable use, delivering robust and comparable data for cancer immune analysis.
- CIMAC-CIDC analyses can be confidently used for statistical associations with clinical outcomes, largely independent of site, antibody, protocol, or platform.
