Distinguish Esophageal Cancer Cells through VOCs Induced by Methionine Regulation

Detection of exhaled volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is promising for noninvasive screening of esophageal cancer (EC). Cellular VOC analysis can be used to investigate potential biomarkers. Considering the crucial role of methionine (Met) during cancer development, exploring associated abnormal metabolic phenotypes becomes imperative. In this work, we employed headspace solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) to investigate the volatile metabolic profiles of EC cells (KYSE150) and normal esophageal epithelial cells (HEECs) under a Met regulation strategy. Using untargeted approaches, we analyzed the metabolic VOCs of the two cell types and explored the differential VOCs between them. Subsequently, we utilized targeted approaches to analyze the differential VOCs in both cell types under gradient Met culture conditions. The results revealed that there were five/six differential VOCs between cells under Met-containing/Met-free culture conditions. And the difference in levels of two characteristic VOCs (1-butanol and ethyl 2-methylbutyrate) between the two cell types intensified with the increase of the Met concentration. Notably, this is the first report on VOC analysis of EC cells and the first to consider the effect of Met on volatile metabolic profiles. The present work indicates that EC cells can be distinguished through VOCs induced by Met regulation, which holds promise for providing novel insights into diagnostic strategies.