The development of efficient protocols for cancer diagnosis remains highly challenging. An emerging approach relies on the detection in exhaled breath of volatile organic compounds (VOC) produced by tumours. In this context, described here is a novel strategy in which a VOC-based probe is converted selectively in malignant tissues, by a tumour-associated enzyme, for releasing the corresponding VOC. The latter is then detected in the exhaled breath as a tumour marker for cancer diagnosis. This approach allows the detection of several different tumours in mice, the monitoring of tumour growth and tumour response to chemotherapy. Thus, the concept of "induced volatolomics" provides a new way to explore biological processes using VOC-based probes that could be adapted to many biomedical applications.
Keywords: cancer; deuterium; enzymes; volatile organic compounds; volatolomics.
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