We are grateful for financial contributions to the beamline development by CEMHTI (Orleans, France, ANR-13-BS08-0012-01) and Labex OSUG@2020 (Grenoble, France, ANR-10-LABX-0056). The FAME-UHD project is financially supported by the French &#34;grand emprunt&#34; EquipEx (EcoX, ANR-10-EQPX-27-01), the CEA-CNRS CRG consortium and the INSU CNRS institute. We are grateful of all the contributions during the experiments especially all the persons working on BM30B and BM16. The authors acknowledge the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility for provision of synchrotron radiation beamtime. We also acknowledge PHYTOMET ANR project for financial support (ANR-16-CE01-0008) and SEDMAC project for financial support (INCA-Plan cancer-ASC16019CS).

1. Preparation of the human PC-3 and OVCAR-3 cancer cell pellets for selenium speciation
NOTE: The following protocol is adapted from Weekley et al.10. All steps have to be carried out under a cell culture hood under biosafety level 2 conditions and restrictions, using aseptic techniques.
<ol>
	<li>Count the cells using a Malassez cell counting chamber. Seed 150,000&#8211;200,000 cells per flask for the PC-3 cell line and 300,000 cells for the OVCAR-3 cell line.</li>
...

<ol>
	<li>Llorens, I., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=High+energy+resolution+five-crystal+spectrometer+for+high+quality+fluorescence+and+absorption+measurements+on+an+x-ray+absorption+spectroscopy+beamline.">High energy resolution five-crystal spectrometer for high quality fluorescence and absorption measurements on an x-ray absorption spectroscopy beamline.</a> Review of Scientific Instruments. 83 (6), 063104 (2012).</li><li>Proux, O., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=High+Energy+Resolution+Fluorescence+Detected+X-ray+Absorption+Spectroscopy:+a+new+powerful+structural+tool+in+environmental+biogeochemistry+sciences.">High Energy Resolution Fluorescence Detected X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy: a new powerful structural tool in environmental biogeochemistry sciences.</a> Journal of Environmental Quality. 46 (6), 1146-1157 (2017).</li><li>Bissardon, C., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Sub-ppm+high+energy+resolution+fluorescence+detected+X-ray+absorption+spectroscopy+of+selenium+in+articular+cartilage.">Sub-ppm high energy resolution fluorescence detected X-ray absorption spectroscopy of selenium in articular cartilage.</a> Analyst. 144 (11), 3488-3493 (2019).</li><li>Proux, O., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=FAME:+a+new+beamline+for+X-ray+absorption+investigations+of+very-diluted+systems+of+environmental,+material+and+biological+interests.">FAME: a new beamline for X-ray absorption investigations of very-diluted systems of environmental, material and biological interests.</a> Physica Scripta. 115, 970-973 (2005).</li><li>George, G. N., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=X-ray-induced+photo-chemistry+and+X-ray+absorption+spectroscopy+of+biological+samples.">X-ray-induced photo-chemistry and X-ray absorption spectroscopy of biological samples.</a> Journal of Synchrotron Radiation. 19 (6), 875-886 (2012).</li><li>Sarret, G., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Use+of+Synchrotron-Based+techniques+to+Elucidate+Metal+Uptake+and+Metabolism+in+Plants.">Use of Synchrotron-Based techniques to Elucidate Metal Uptake and Metabolism in Plants.</a> Advanced in Agronomy. 119, 1-82 (2013).</li><li>Porcaro, F., Roudeau, S., Carmona, A., Ortega, R. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Advances+in+element+speciation+analysis+of+biomedical+samples+using+synchrotron-based+techniques.">Advances in element speciation analysis of biomedical samples using synchrotron-based techniques.</a> Trends Analytical Chemistry. 104, 22-41 (2018).</li><li>Role of selenium nanoparticles to dampen the metastatic potential of aggressive cancer cells. 9th bioMedical Applications of Synchrotron Radiation, Beijing, China Available from: <a target="_blank" href="https://indico.ihep.ac.cn/event/7794/contribution/7">https://indico.ihep.ac.cn/event/7794/contribution/7</a> (2018)</li><li>Weekley, C. M., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Speciation+of+Seleno-amino+Acids+by+Human+Cancer+Cells:+X-ray+Absorption+and+Fluorescence+Methods.">Speciation of Seleno-amino Acids by Human Cancer Cells: X-ray Absorption and Fluorescence Methods.</a> Biochemistry. 50 (10), 1641-1650 (2011).</li><li>Sutak, R., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+comparative+study+of+iron+uptake+mechanisms+in+marine+microalgae:+Iron+binding+at+the+cell+surface+is+a+critical+step.">A comparative study of iron uptake mechanisms in marine microalgae: Iron binding at the cell surface is a critical step.</a> Plant Physiology. 160, 2271-2284 (2012).</li><li>Asakura, K., Abe, H., Kimura, M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=The+challenge+of+constructing+an+international+XAFS+database.">The challenge of constructing an international XAFS database.</a> Journal of Synchrotron Radiation. 25 (4), 967-971 (2018).</li><li>SSHADE: "Solid Spectroscopy Hosting Architecture of Databases and Expertise" and its databases. OSUG Data Center. Service/Database Infrastructure Available from: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.sshade.eu/">https://www.sshade.eu/</a> (2018)</li><li>Bissardon, C., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Sub-ppm+high+energy+resolution+fluorescence+detected+X-ray+absorption+spectroscopy+of+selenium+in+articular+cartilage.">Sub-ppm high energy resolution fluorescence detected X-ray absorption spectroscopy of selenium in articular cartilage.</a> Analyst. 144 (11), 3488-3493 (2019).</li><li>Ravel, B., Newville, M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=ATHENA,+ARTEMIS,+HEPHAESTUS:+data+analysis+for+X-ray+absorption+spectroscopy+using+IFEFFIT.">ATHENA, ARTEMIS, HEPHAESTUS: data analysis for X-ray absorption spectroscopy using IFEFFIT.</a> Journal of Synchrotron Radiation. 12 (4), 537-541 (2005).</li><li>Webb, S. M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=SIXpack:+a+graphical+user+interface+for+XAS+analysis+using+IFEFFIT.">SIXpack: a graphical user interface for XAS analysis using IFEFFIT.</a> Physica Scripta. 115, 1011 (2005).</li><li>Klementiev, K. V. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=VIPER+for+Windows.">VIPER for Windows.</a> Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics. 34 (2), 209-217 (2001).</li><li>Newville, M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Fundamental+of+XAFS.">Fundamental of XAFS.</a> Reviews in Mineralogy &amp; Geochemistry. 78, 33-74 (2014).</li><li>Henderson, G. S., de Groot, F. M. F., Moulton, B. J. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=X-ray+Absorption+Near-Edge+Structure+(XANES)+Spectroscopy.">X-ray Absorption Near-Edge Structure (XANES) Spectroscopy.</a> Reviews in Mineralogy &amp; Geochemistry. 78, 75-138 (2014).</li><li>Ortega, R., Carmona, A., Llorens, I., Solari, P. L. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=X-ray+absorption+spectroscopy+of+biological+samples.+A+tutorial.">X-ray absorption spectroscopy of biological samples. A tutorial.</a> Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry. 27, 2054-2065 (2012).</li><li>Se K edge XAS HERFD of selenium with various oxidation states at 10K. SSHADE/FAME Available from: <a target="_blank" href="https://doi.org/10.26302/SSHADE/EXPERIMENT_CB_20190408_001">https://doi.org/10.26302/SSHADE/EXPERIMENT_CB_20190408_001</a> (2019)</li><li>George, G. N., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=X-ray-induced+photo-chemistry+and+X-ray+absorption+spectroscopy+of+biological+samples.">X-ray-induced photo-chemistry and X-ray absorption spectroscopy of biological samples.</a> Journal of Synchrotron Radiation. 19, 875-886 (2012).</li></ol>

This protocol was used to study the chemical form of selenium and iron in biological samples by X-ray absorption spectroscopy. It focuses on the cryo-preparation and storage of biological samples and references compounds, as well as on the HERFD-XAS measurements.
Cryo-preparation and storage 
The cryo-preparation of the bulk biological sample pellets allows preservation of the chemical integrity of the species present in the samples. This is crucial, because speciation ch...

The study of the cellular biotransformations of essential or toxic elements requires speciation techniques with high sensitivity and should minimize sample preparation steps that are often prone to modification of chemical species.
Physiological elements such as selenium and iron are known to be particularly difficult to speciate due to their complex chemistry, various stabilities of the selenium or iron species, and their low concentration in the ppm (mg/kg) or even sub-ppm range. Thus, the study of the speciation of these elements by XAS can be extremely challenging. Synchrotron XAS and especially high energy resolution fluorescence detected XAS (HERFD-XAS), which allows a very low signal-to-background ratio1, are available at synchrotron sources to speciate highly diluted elements in complex biological matrices2,3. Conventional fluorescence-XAS measurements can be performed using an energy resolved solid state detector (SSD) with an energy bandwidth ~150&#8211;250 eV, on the CRG-FAME beamline at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF)4, while HERFD-XAS measurements need a crystal analyzer spectrometer (CAS), with an energy bandwidth ~1&#8211;3 eV, on the CRG-FAME-UHD beamline at the ESRF2. Fluorescence photons are discriminated with respect to their energy with electronic or optical processes respectively.
The sample cryo-preparation is essential to preserve structures and maintain compositional chemical integrity, thus allowing analysis close to the biological native state5. Moreover, analyses performed at cryogenic temperatures as low as 10 K using liquid helium cryogenic cooling (LN2), allow radiation damage to slow down and preserve elemental speciation for XAS. Although some reviews on XAS techniques applied to biological samples report the necessity to prepare and analyze samples in cryogenic conditions (e.g., Sarret et al.6, Porcaro et al.7), none of them clearly describes the related detailed protocol. In this publication, a method for cryo-preparation of cancer cells and plankton microorganisms is described for HERFD-XAS speciation of Se8 and Fe9 at cryogenic temperature.
Good practice for sample preparation and environment during state-of-the-art XAS spectroscopy measurements require 1) a setup; 2) an analysis procedure that limits the effects of radiation damage as much as possible; and 3) a sample (or model compound reference) as homogeneous as possible with respect to the X-ray photons beam size. The first item is taken into account by performing the acquisition at a low temperature, using a liquid helium cryostat. The second item is dealt with by performing each acquisition on a fresh area of the sample by moving it with respect to the beam. Finally, considering the third condition, samples (pellets) and references (powders) are conditioned in pressed bulk pellets in order to limit porosities and inhomogeneities as much as possible, and to avoid roughness with respect to the beam size on the X-ray probed sample surface. We explain how the protocol deals with all of these points.
We used human prostate cell line PC-3 (high metastatic potential) and ovarian cell line OVCAR-3 (which accounts for up to 70% of all ovarian cancer cases) to investigate the antiproliferative properties towards cancer cells of selenium nanoparticles (Se-NPs), and Phaeodactylum tricornutum diatom as a model species to investigate iron sequestration in phytoplankton.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="width:2175px;" width="2174">
	<colgroup>
		<col />
		<col />
		<col />
		<col />
	</colgroup>
	<tbody>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:352px;">Ammonium nitrate</td>
			<td style="width:208px;">Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:389px;">A3795</td>
			<td style="width:1225px;">NH4NO3, 2.66 mg/L of milliQ water</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Anaerobic chamber</td>
			<td>Coy Laboratory, USA</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>equipped with Anaerobic Monitor (CAM-12)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Antibiotic stock</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>A0166 for ampicillin, S9137 for streptomycin sulfate</td>
			<td>1 mL/L of milliQ water (ampicillin sodium and streptomycin sulfate, 100 mg/mL)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Boron nitride powder</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td align="right">255475</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Cell counting chamber</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Neubauer or Malassez</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Cell scraper</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Dulbecco&#39;s Phosphate Buffered Saline (DPBS)</td>
			<td>GIBCO</td>
			<td>14190-094</td>
			<td>Without Calcium, Magnesium, Phenol Red</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Eppendorf tubes</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>0.5 mL and 1.5 mL</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Falcon tubes</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>15 mL and 50 mL</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Ferric citrate Fe/citrate = 1/20</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>F3388</td>
			<td>aqueous solution of FeCl3 50 mM and Na-citrate 1M pH 6.5</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Fetal Bovine Serum</td>
			<td>GIBCO</td>
			<td>A31604-02</td>
			<td>Performance Plus, certified One Shot format, US origin</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Flasks</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>Z707503</td>
			<td>TPP 150 cm2 area</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Growth chamber</td>
			<td>Sanyo</td>
			<td>Sanyo MLR-352</td>
			<td>at 20 &#176;C and under a 12:12 light (3,000 lux) dark regime</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">HEPES buffer</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>H4034</td>
			<td>1 g/L of milliQ water HEPES</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">High grade serous, OVCAR-3</td>
			<td>ATCC, Rockville, MD</td>
			<td>HTB-161</td>
			<td>Storage temperature: liquid nitrogen vapor temperature</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Incubator</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Incubator at 37&#176;C, humidified atmosphere with 5% CO2</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Insulin solution from bovine pancreas</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>I0516</td>
			<td>10 mg/mL insulin in 25mM HEPES, pH 8.2, BioReagent, sterile-filtered, suitable for cell culture</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Manual hydraulic press</td>
			<td>Specac, USA</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum</td>
			<td>Roscoff culture collection</td>
			<td>RCC69</td>
			<td>http://roscoff-culture-collection.org/rcc-strain-details/69</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Morpholinepropanesulfonic acid</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>M3183</td>
			<td>MOPS, 250 mg/L of milliQ water (pH 7.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Optical microscope</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">PC-3</td>
			<td>ECCAC, Salisbury, UK</td>
			<td align="right">90112714</td>
			<td>Storage temperature: liquid nitrogen vapor temperature</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Penicillin-Streptomycin</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>P4333</td>
			<td>Solution stabilized, with 10,000 units penicillin and 10 mg streptomycin/mL, sterile-filtered, BioReagent, suitable for cell culture</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Pipette-boy</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>25mL-, 10mL-, and 5mL sterile plastic-pipettes</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Plankton culture products, Mf medium: Sea salts</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>S9883</td>
			<td>40g/L of milliQ water. Composition: Cl- 19.29 g, Na+ 10.78 g, SO42- 2.66 g, Mg2+ 1.32 g, K+ 420 mg, Ca2+ 400 mg, CO32- /HCO3- 200 mg, Sr2+ 8.8 mg, BO2- 5.6 mg, Br- 56 mg, I- 0.24 mg, Li+ 0.3 mg, F- 1 mg</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Plastic tweezers</td>
			<td>Oxford Instrument</td>
			<td>AGT 5230</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">RPMI MEDIUM 1640 (ATCC Modification)</td>
			<td>GIBCO</td>
			<td>A10491-01</td>
			<td>Solution with 4.5 g/L D-glucose, 1.5 g/L Sodium Bicarbonate, 110 mg/L (1 mM) Sodium Pyruvate, 2.388 g/L (10 mM) HEPES buffer and 300 mg/L L-glutamine for research use</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Selenium nanoparticles (Se-NPs), BSA coated, 2 mg/mL</td>
			<td>NANOCS Company, USA</td>
			<td>Se50-BS-1</td>
			<td>BSA stabilized Se-NPs solution. Average size about 30 nm. Stored at 4&#176;C in the dark, protected from the light.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Selenium nanoparticles (Se-NPs), Chitosan coated, 2 mg/mL</td>
			<td>NANOCS Company, USA</td>
			<td>11. Se50-CS-1</td>
			<td>Chitosan stabilized Se-NPs solution. Average size about 30 nm. Stored at 4&#176;C in the dark, protected from the light.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Sodium metasilicate pentahydrate</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td align="right">71746</td>
			<td>Na2SiO3.5H2O, 22.8 mg/L of milliQ water</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Sodium nitrate</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>S5022</td>
			<td>NaNO3, 75 mg/L of milliQ water</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Sodium phosphate monobasic</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>S5011</td>
			<td>NaH2PO4, 15 mg/L of milliQ water</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">T-75 flasks</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Tissue culture hood</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Trace metal stock</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>M5005, Z1001, M1651, C2911, 450243, 451193, 229857</td>
			<td>1 mL/L of milliQ water (MnCl2.4H2O 200 mg/L, ZnSO4.7H2O 40 mg/L, Na2MoO4.2H2O 20mg/L, CoCl2.6H2O 14 mg/L, Na3VO4.nH2O 10 mg/L, NiCl2 10 mg/L, H2SeO3 10 mg/L)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Trypan Blue Solution (0.4%)</td>
			<td>GIBCO</td>
			<td align="right">15250061</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Trypsin-EDTA (0.05%), phenol red</td>
			<td>GIBCO</td>
			<td>25300-054</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Vitamin stock</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>T1270 for thiamine, B4639 for biotin, V6629 for B12</td>
			<td>1 mL/L of milliQ water (thiamine HCl 20 mg/L, biotin 1 mg/L, B12 1 mg/L)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Water bath 37&#176;C</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

biological samples preparation for speciation at cryogenic temperature using high-resolution  x-ray absorption spectroscopy

The study of elements with X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is of particular interest when studying the role of metals in biological systems. Sample preparation is a key and often complex procedure, particularly for biological samples. Although X-ray speciation techniques are widely used, no detailed protocol has been yet disseminated for users of the technique. Further, chemical state modification is of concern, and cryo-based techniques are recommended to analyze the biological samples in their near-native hydrated state to provide the maximum preservation of chemical integrity of the cells or tissues. Here, we propose a cellular preparation protocol based on cryo-preserved samples. It is demonstrated in a high energy resolution fluorescence detected X-ray absorption spectroscopy study of selenium in cancer cells and a study of iron in phytoplankton. This protocol can be used with other biological samples and other X-ray techniques that can be damaged by irradiation.

The main aims of these preparations were to investigate the interaction between selenium nanoparticles (Se-NPs) and cancer cells, and iron binding and sequestration in phytoplankton.
HERFD-XANES spectra of the selenium in the initial state (BSA Se-NPs) and in cells incubated in nutritive medium (BSA Se-NPs after 24 h incubation) are shown in Figure 10. Results showed that selenium in the initial Se-NPs was present as both Se(0) and selenite-like forms, ...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Biological Samples Preparation for Speciation at Cryogenic Temperature using High-Resolution  X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy at JoVE.com

Biological Samples Preparation for Speciation at Cryogenic Temperature using High-Resolution  X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy

This protocol presents a detailed procedure to prepare biological cryosamples for synchrotron-based X-ray absorption spectroscopy experiments. We describe all the steps required to optimize sample preparation and cryopreservation with examples of the protocol with cancer and phytoplankton cells. This method provides a universal standard of sample cryo-preparation.

The study of elements with X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is of particular interest when studying the role of metals in biological systems. Sample ...

This protocol has been standardized for cellular specimens, allowing the comparison of experiments running at different synchrotron locations. The main advantage of this technique is a simple and straightforward workflow that allows a fast and reliable preservation of the chemical integration of the sample. Individuals new to this technique may struggle with the frozen iterated cells pelleting and the fast loading of the cellular pellet into the cryosample order.A precise and quick unlink of a samples in cryogenic temperature is critical. As such, a visual demonstration is a essential to understand how to perform the technique. To prepare human prostate and ovarian cancer cell line cell pellets for selenium speciation, seed the appropriate number of cells from each cell line into three T-75 flasks per condition in the appropriate cell culture medium in a laminar flow hood and place the flasks into 37 degree Celsius and 5%carbon dioxide cell culture incubator until the cells are 80%confluent.To expose the cancer cells to selenium treatment, first sonicate freshly prepared nanoparticle stock solutions in an ultrasound water bath for 30 minutes at room temperature before serially diluting the selenium nanoparticle solution in complete cell culture medium to the appropriate working concentrations. In the laminar flow hood, gently wash the cells two times with five milliliters of 37 degrees Celsius PBS per wash and use a sterile 25 milliliter pipette to carefully add 15 milliliters of the selenium treatment of interest to the bottom of the flask. Close the lids without completely sealing the flask and place the flasks horizontally in the cell culture incubator for 24 hours.To prepare the cell pellets after washing and replenishing the culture medium, use one cell scraper per flask to gently detach the cells. Use medium to flush any cells stuck to the flask into the supernatant and collect the dissociated cells by centrifugation. Wash the pellets two times in five milliliters of PBS per tube per wash to remove all remaining traces of the treatment and resuspend the cells in one milliliter of PBS.Transfer the cells into a 1.5 milliliter polypropylene tube and collect the cells with another centrifugation. Then use a 200 microliter pipette to gently remove all of the supernatant and plunge the bottom part of each 1.5 milliliter tube into liquid nitrogen to the level of the cell pellet. Immediately after freezing, transfer the tubes into a liquid nitrogen dewar for long-term storage.For high resolution x-ray absorption spectroscopy, optimize all of the crystals from the crystal analyzer spectrometer in Bragg conditions with respect to the fluorescence line energy of interest and use a reference for which the energy position of the absorption edge is known to calibrate the incident monochromatic beam energy. Transfer the sample holder to a liquid helium cryostat for biological samples and set the cryostat to 10 degrees Kelvin, then close the experimental hutch following the synchrotron safety rules, and begin the analysis. Here, representative high resolution x-ray absorption spectroscopy spectra of the selenium in the initial state and in cells incubated to nutritive medium demonstrate that the selenium in the initial selenium nanoparticles was present as both selenium zero and cellulite-like forms.After interactions with the PC3 cells, however, the selenium was mainly present in the cells as selenium zero, demonstrating a change of selenium species within the cells. For iron, high-resolution x-ray absorption spectroscopy reference spectra exhibit distinct edge positions depending on the iron oxidation state, with reduced species of iron shifted to low energy values. Two successive spectra collected on the same position of a diatom pellet were similar, indicating that the beam damage was limited between two acquisitions when using a helium cryostat at 10 Kelvin.Furthermore, spectra from different positions of the diatom pellet were identical, demonstrating that the sample pellet was homogenous and that the spectra could be averaged to obtain a better signal-to-noise ratio spectrum. The most critical steps are the preparation of the nanoparticle diltuion, pelleting at cryogenic temperature, and the preparation of the standard reference samples. This procedure can be applied to other bulk analytical techniques, such as ICP-MS or HPLC-ICP-MS or other non-synchrotron spectroscopic techniques able to be performed form at cryogenic temperature.Other scientific questions can be explored using this procedure, particularly in the fields of biogeology, of biochemistry, and environmental sciences or toxicology research. Selenium compounds and selenium nanoparticles can be as arduous to your health and should be manipulated in a dedicated chemical hood using gloves, glasses, and a face mask.

Research

JoVE Journal

Chemistry

Untargeted Metabolomics from Biological Sources Using Ultraperformance Liquid Chromatography-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-HRMS)

Untargeted Metabolomics from Biological Sources Using Ultraperformance Liquid Chromatography-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry UPLC-HRMS

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Preparing Adherent Cells for X-ray Fluorescence Imaging by Chemical Fixation

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Preparation of Carbon Nanosheets at Room Temperature

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Rapid High-throughput Species Identification of Botanical Material Using Direct Analysis in Real Time High Resolution Mass Spectrometry

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Quantifying X-Ray Fluorescence Data Using MAPS

The quantification of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) microscopy maps by fitting the raw spectra to a known standard is crucial for evaluating chemical ...

Total Internal Reflection Absorption Spectroscopy (TIRAS) for the Detection of Solvated Electrons at a Plasma-liquid Interface

Total Internal Reflection Absorption Spectroscopy TIRAS for the Detection of Solvated Electrons at a Plasma-liquid Interface

The total internal reflection absorption spectroscopy (TIRAS) method presented in this article uses an inexpensive diode laser to detect solvated ...

Microfluidic Chips for In Situ Crystal X-ray Diffraction and In Situ Dynamic Light Scattering for Serial Crystallography

Microfluidic Chips for In Situ Crystal X-ray Diffraction and In Situ Dynamic Light Scattering for Serial Crystallography

This protocol describes fabricating microfluidic devices with low X-ray background optimized for goniometer based fixed target serial crystallography. The ...

Essential Metal Uptake in Gram-negative Bacteria: X-ray Fluorescence, Radioisotopes, and Cell Fractionation

We demonstrate a scalable method for the separation of the bacterial periplasm from the cytoplasm. This method is used to purify periplasmic protein for ...

Elemental-sensitive Detection of the Chemistry in Batteries through Soft X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy and Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering

Energy storage has become more and more a limiting factor of today's sustainable energy applications, including electric vehicles and green electric grid ...

Improving High Viscosity Extrusion of Microcrystals for Time-resolved Serial Femtosecond Crystallography at X-ray Lasers

High-viscosity micro-extrusion injectors have dramatically reduced sample consumption in serial femtosecond crystallographic experiments (SFX) at X-ray ...