Fig. 1

Overview of NanoString pathway activity profiling in metaplastic and triple negative breast cancer samples. a) Growth factor receptor network (GFRN), stemness, or apoptosis genes were individually overexpressed in normal human mammary epithelial cells (HMECs) using adenovirus delivery. b) The gene expression changes most correlated with induction of expression of these genes were identified. c) Gene lists were pared down to the fewest number of genes able to accurately predict that gene’s signature activity. These genes plus genes from other pathways relevant to breast cancer were placed on a custom NanoString panel. d) RNA from patient breast cancer samples was assayed using the custom NanoString panel. Figure artwork was created by the authors