Assessment of Tumor Cells in a Mouse Model of Diffuse Infiltrative Glioma by Raman Spectroscopy

Glioma of infiltrative nature is challenging for surgeons to achieve tumor-specific and maximal resection. Raman spectroscopy provides structural information on the targeted materials as vibrational shifts. We utilized Raman spectroscopy to distinguish invasive tumors from normal tissues. Spectra obtained from replication-competent avian sarcoma-(RCAS-) based infiltrative glioma cells and glioma tissues (resembling low-grade human glioma) were compared with those obtained from normal mouse astrocytes and normal tissues. In cell analysis, the spectra at 950–1000, 1030, 1050–1100, 1120–1130, 1120–1200, 1200–1300, 1300–1350, and 1450 cm(−1) were significantly higher in infiltrative glioma cells than in normal astrocytes. In brain tissue analysis, the spectra at 1030, 1050–1100, and 1200–1300 cm(−1) were significantly higher in infiltrative glioma tissues than in normal brain tissues. These spectra reflect the structures of proteins, lipids, and DNA content. The sensitivity and specificity to predict glioma cells by distinguishing normal cells were 98.3% and 75.0%, respectively. Principal component analysis elucidated the significance of spectral difference between tumor tissues and normal tissues. It is possible to distinguish invasive tumors from normal tissues by using Raman spectroscopy.