Detection of Sialic Acid to Differentiate Cervical Cancer Cell Lines Using a Lectin Biosensor.

Pap smear screening is a widespread technique used to detect premalignant lesions of cervical cancer (CC); however, it lacks sensitivity, leading to identifying biomarkers that improve early diagnosis sensitivity. A characteristic of cancer is the aberrant sialylation that involves the abnormal expression of α2,6 sialic acid, a specific carbohydrate linked to glycoproteins and glycolipids on the cell surface, which has been reported in premalignant CC lesions. This work aimed to develop a method to differentiate CC cell lines and primary fibroblasts using a novel lectin-based biosensor to detect α2,6 sialic acid based on attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and chemometric.