Spatial Integration of Protein and Chromosomal States Reveals Early Copy-Number Changes and Genotype-Associated...

Detecting chromosomal copy-number alterations together with protein-defined cell states in intact tissue is critical for understanding early clonal evolution and microenvironmental interactions in cancer. We developed ORION-FISH, which integrates high-plex tissue imaging with a morphology-preserving DNA fluorescence in situ hybridization (DNA-FISH) workflow and single-cell registration, yielding measurements concordant with clinical FISH. In high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC), ORION-FISH recapitulated known chromosomal changes while revealing subclonal heterogeneity missed by targeted sequencing. Applied to serous tubal intraepithelial carcinomas, precursors of HGSOC, ORION-FISH identified intermixed epithelial cells with MYC or CCNE1 copy-number gains, as well as concurrent alterations associated with distinct immune microenvironments. In addition, epithelial cells with MYC and CCNE1 copy-number gains were detected in morphologically normal fallopian tube epithelium, along with rare MDM4 increases across epithelial lineages. Together, ORION-FISH provides a framework linking chromosomal copy-number states to protein-defined phenotypes within preserved tissue architecture, enabling context-aware interrogation of early copy-number diversification at single-cell resolution.

We introduce ORION-FISH, a spatially resolved workflow integrating multiplexed protein imaging with DNA-FISH to map genomic alterations within intact tissues. Applying this approach to ovarian cancer precursors reveals early copy-number diversification and associations with the local immune context, providing a foundation for studying how genomic and microenvironmental states coevolve during tumor initiation.