Cell ablation

Cell ablation (from Latin Cellula "small chamber" and Ablatio "removal"). Also known as tissue ablation, cell ablation is a biotechnological tool for studying cell lineage. The process consists of selectively destroying or removing cells in an organism.

For example, a laser beam or controllable gene promoter for a toxin gene can be used to destroy a selected amount of cells.[1]

Cell ablation can also be used as a tool to produce transgenic organisms lacking a cell type, and as a cure for certain diseases such as cancer.[2]

The term is not to be confused with genetic ablation: a method of modifying DNA in order to disrupt the production of a specific gene.[3]

There are multiple different techniques of cell ablation (laser ablation, thermal ablation, etc...). Many of which are being utilized in biomedical sciences to study cell functions[4]

Laser cell ablation

Laser was used during the early stages of cell ablation, utilizing the flexibility, precision and heat generated from concentrated light waves (laser). Laser ablation was extremely effective in destroying cells in vitro, as intensity of light was easily manipulated to injure cells.[4] Laser ablation is not recommended for in vivo, as the potential damage from laser was too high. High cost of operation, and extensive operating time narrowed its accessibility for cell studies.[4]

Recently, laser ablation was applied with ICP-MS to develop LA-ICP-MS analysis technique. In which utilizes the precision and ability to change laser intensity to determine elemental distribution of biological samples.[5]

Thermal cell ablation

Thermal ablation is widely used in biomedical science as a form of heat therapy for cancer. Extreme heat are applied to tumors, damaging the tissues to eliminate the tumors from eligible patients.[2] Similarly, cryoablation can also be used as a potential treatment. Sudden drop to freezing temperature can cause crystal formation, puncturing membranes and causing cell death.

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) utilizes high frequency sound waves to produce heat as a mean to destroy cells. RFA is frequently used as a minimally-evasive treatment for small tumors.[6]

References
  1. Michiko, Saito; et al. (1 August 2001). "Diphtheria toxin receptor mediated conditional and targeted cell ablation in transgenic mice". Nature Biotechnology. 19 (8): 746–750. doi:10.1038/90795. PMID 11479567. S2CID 23692936.
  2. Rangamuwa, Kanishka; Leong, Tracy; Weeden, Clare; Asselin-Labat, Marie-Liesse; Bozinovski, Steven; Christie, Michael; John, Tom; Antippa, Phillip; Irving, Louis; Steinfort, Daniel (June 2021). "Thermal ablation in non-small cell lung cancer: a review of treatment modalities and the evidence for combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors". Translational Lung Cancer Research. 10 (6): 2842–2857. doi:10.21037/tlcr-20-1075. ISSN 2218-6751. PMC 8264311. PMID 34295682.
  3. Rossi, Francesca; Punzo, Francesca; Umano, Giuseppina Rosaria; Argenziano, Maura; Miraglia Del Giudice, Emanuele (September 2018). "Role of Cannabinoids in Obesity". International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 19 (9): 2690. doi:10.3390/ijms19092690. PMC 6163475. PMID 30201891.
  4. Liu, Fengming; Dai, Shen; Feng, Dechun; Peng, Xiao; Qin, Zhongnan; Kearns, Alison C; Huang, Wenfei; Chen, Yong; Ergün, Süleyman; Wang, Hong; Rappaport, Jay (December 2019). "Versatile cell ablation tools and their applications to study loss of cell functions". Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences. 76 (23): 4725–4743. doi:10.1007/s00018-019-03243-w. ISSN 1420-682X. PMC 6858955. PMID 31359086.
  5. Sussulini, Alessandra; Becker, Julia Susanne; Becker, Johanna Sabine (2017). "Laser ablation ICP-MS: Application in biomedical research". Mass Spectrometry Reviews. 36 (1): 47–57. Bibcode:2017MSRv...36...47S. doi:10.1002/mas.21481. ISSN 1098-2787. PMID 26398248.
  6. Dib, Regina El; Touma, Naji J.; Kapoor, Anil (2012). "Cryoablation vs radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of renal cell carcinoma: a meta-analysis of case series studies". BJU International. 110 (4): 510–516. doi:10.1111/j.1464-410X.2011.10885.x. ISSN 1464-410X. PMID 22304329. S2CID 36726814.


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