MSACL 2024 Abstract

Molecular Heterogeneity in Human Pancreas, Kidney, and Eye Revealed by Multimodal Spatial Atlases

Angela R. S. Kruse 1,2, Kristie I. Aamodt 3, Chunhua Dai 4, Morad C. Malek 1,2, Roy Lardenoije 5, Lukasz Migas 6, Melissa A. Farrow 1,2, Diane Saunders 4, Raf Van de Plas 6, Joana P. Goncalves 5, Richard M. Caprioli 1,8, Alvin C. Powers 3,4,7, Jeffrey M. Spraggins 1,2,8,5
1 Mass Spectrometry Research Center, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 2 Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 3 Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 4 Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 5 Department of Intelligent Systems, Faculty EEMCS, Delft, Netherlands 6 Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands 7 Veteran Affairs Tennessee Valley Healthcare System, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 8 Department of Chemistry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA.

Angela Kruse, PhD (Presenter) Ohio State University

Presenter Bio: Angela Kruse is a Research Assistant Professor in the department of Cell and Developmental Biology and the Mass Spectrometry Research Center at Vanderbilt University. Her research integrates imaging mass spectrometry, proteomics, spatial transcriptomics, biochemistry, and microscopy to understand how diabetes affects the molecular environment in the pancreas, kidney, and eye. She received her Ph.D. in Plant Pathology with a focus in Biochemistry from Cornell University prior to conducting her postdoctoral studies under the guidance of Drs. Richard Caprioli and Jeff Spraggins at Vanderbilt University. She plans to spend her career applying and integrating cutting edge technologies to address important challenges in human health and the environment.

Relevant Financial Disclosures (within past 24 months, reported on Mar 13, 2026) No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose. Discussing Products? NO, presenter will NOT present educational content related to products/services of the ineligible company(ies) listed above. Conflict mitigation NOT REQUIRED.

The function of healthy human organs is dependent on highly coordinated interactions between cells and structures in 3-dimensional space. As part of the Human Biomolecular Atlas Program (HuBMAP), we apply multimodal molecular imaging to characterize the cellular and molecular organization of the human kidney, pancreas, and eye. Our pipeline integrates imaging mass spectrometry, highly multiplexed immunofluorescence microscopy, autofluorescence microscopy, stained microscopy, spatial transcriptomics, and spatial proteomics to understand molecular variation in healthy compared to diabetic individuals. Each modality is specifically chosen to span a wide range of spatial scales (e.g., single cells, functional tissue units, neighborhoods, and whole organs) and molecular classes (e.g., metabolites, lipids, proteins, and RNA transcripts). Using this workflow, we have identified key pathways involved in diabetic pathologies including pancreatic islet dysfunction and kidney glomerular sclerosis.