Surgery with real-time metabolic profiling

Metabolic profiling of tissue samples could transform the way surgeons make decisions in the operating theatre following the opening of a new laboratory (Jan 12). Scientists at Imperial College London, in partnership with clinicians at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, have installed a high resolution solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer in St Mary’s Hospital. Researchers will use the machine to analyse intact tissue samples from patients taking part in studies, to investigate whether it can ultimately give surgeons detailed diagnostic information while their patients are under the knife.

The Surgical Metabonomics Laboratory will be led by the surgical innovator Professor Lord Ara Darzi and Professor Jeremy Nicholson, a leading researcher in biomolecular medicine and Head of the Department of Surgery and Cancer.

Professor Darzi, Chairman of the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London and an Honorary Consultant Surgeon with Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said: "People respond differently to the physical trauma of surgery, but currently the tools we have to measure how they respond are very limited. Blood tests are slow and they can only measure one chemical component at a time; the doctor simply looks at whether a particular measure has gone up or down. Using NMR, we can simultaneously measure all of the chemicals that the body is producing, and analyse those data to give the surgeon real-time information about the patient’s condition which will help him make decisions."

To help realise the vision of the new centre to enhance surgical safety and patient care, Imperial has partnered with two of the world’s leading spectroscopic instrument manufacturers, Bruker BioSpin and the Waters Corporation, who will help to develop, optimise and implement NMR and mass spectrometric technologies for real time diagnostics and prognostic modelling.

"By combining bioinformatics and surgical expertise with advanced mass spectrometry technology, Imperial College London is setting a powerful vision for innovative new techniques in the operating room," said Rohit Khanna PhD, Vice President of Worldwide Marketing for Waters.

"At Waters, our success is based upon the ability and imagination of scientists to apply advances in analytical technology to solve their most difficult challenges. Bringing metabolic profiling to the surgical suite is a great example of how a disruptive innovation can potentially improve patient care with a radical new approach. On behalf of all Waters employees, we congratulate Imperial on the launch of the Surgical Metabonomics Laboratory. We look forward to working together on tomorrow’s innovations."