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Amereh M, Seyfoori A, Dallinger B, Azimzadeh M, Stefanek E, Akbari M. 3D-Printed Tumor-on-a-Chip Model for Investigating the Effect of Matrix Stiffness on Glioblastoma Tumor Invasion. Biomimetics (Basel) 2023; 8:421. [PMID: 37754172 PMCID: PMC10526170 DOI: 10.3390/biomimetics8050421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 08/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) tumor progression has been recognized to be correlated with extracellular matrix (ECM) stiffness. Dynamic variation of tumor ECM is primarily regulated by a family of enzymes which induce remodeling and degradation. In this paper, we investigated the effect of matrix stiffness on the invasion pattern of human glioblastoma tumoroids. A 3D-printed tumor-on-a-chip platform was utilized to culture human glioblastoma tumoroids with the capability of evaluating the effect of stiffness on tumor progression. To induce variations in the stiffness of the collagen matrix, different concentrations of collagenase were added, thereby creating an inhomogeneous collagen concentration. To better understand the mechanisms involved in GBM invasion, an in silico hybrid mathematical model was used to predict the evolution of a tumor in an inhomogeneous environment, providing the ability to study multiple dynamic interacting variables. The model consists of a continuum reaction-diffusion model for the growth of tumoroids and a discrete model to capture the migration of single cells into the surrounding tissue. Results revealed that tumoroids exhibit two distinct patterns of invasion in response to the concentration of collagenase, namely ring-type and finger-type patterns. Moreover, higher concentrations of collagenase resulted in greater invasion lengths, confirming the strong dependency of tumor behavior on the stiffness of the surrounding matrix. The agreement between the experimental results and the model's predictions demonstrates the advantages of this approach in investigating the impact of various extracellular matrix characteristics on tumor growth and invasion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meitham Amereh
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (M.A.); (A.S.); (M.A.)
- Laboratory for Innovations in MicroEngineering (LiME), Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (B.D.); (E.S.)
- Centre for Advanced Materials and Related Technologies (CAMTEC), University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada
| | - Amir Seyfoori
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (M.A.); (A.S.); (M.A.)
- Laboratory for Innovations in MicroEngineering (LiME), Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (B.D.); (E.S.)
- Centre for Advanced Materials and Related Technologies (CAMTEC), University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada
| | - Briana Dallinger
- Laboratory for Innovations in MicroEngineering (LiME), Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (B.D.); (E.S.)
| | - Mostafa Azimzadeh
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (M.A.); (A.S.); (M.A.)
- Laboratory for Innovations in MicroEngineering (LiME), Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (B.D.); (E.S.)
| | - Evan Stefanek
- Laboratory for Innovations in MicroEngineering (LiME), Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (B.D.); (E.S.)
| | - Mohsen Akbari
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (M.A.); (A.S.); (M.A.)
- Laboratory for Innovations in MicroEngineering (LiME), Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada; (B.D.); (E.S.)
- Centre for Advanced Materials and Related Technologies (CAMTEC), University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada
- Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovations, Los Angeles, CA 91367, USA
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2
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Cai H, Ao Z, Tian C, Wu Z, Kaurich C, Chen Z, Gu M, Hohmann AG, Mackie K, Guo F. Engineering human spinal microphysiological systems to model opioid-induced tolerance. Bioact Mater 2023; 22:482-490. [PMID: 36330161 PMCID: PMC9618681 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2022.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 10/04/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
pioids are commonly used for treating chronic pain. However, with continued use, they may induce tolerance and/or hyperalgesia, which limits therapeutic efficacy. The human mechanisms of opioid-induced tolerance and hyperalgesia are significantly understudied, in part, because current models cannot fully recapitulate human pathology. Here, we engineered novel human spinal microphysiological systems (MPSs) integrated with plug-and-play neural activity sensing for modeling human nociception and opioid-induced tolerance. Each spinal MPS consists of a flattened human spinal cord organoid derived from human stem cells and a 3D printed organoid holder device for plug-and-play neural activity measurement. We found that the flattened organoid design of MPSs not only reduces hypoxia and necrosis in the organoids, but also promotes their neuron maturation, neural activity, and functional development. We further demonstrated that prolonged opioid exposure resulted in neurochemical correlates of opioid tolerance and hyperalgesia, as measured by altered neural activity, and downregulation of μ-opioid receptor expression of human spinal MPSs. The MPSs are scalable, cost-effective, easy-to-use, and compatible with commonly-used well-plates, thus allowing plug-and-play measurements of neural activity. We believe the MPSs hold a promising translational potential for studying human pain etiology, screening new treatments, and validating novel therapeutics for human pain medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongwei Cai
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
| | - Zheng Ao
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
| | - Chunhui Tian
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
| | - Zhuhao Wu
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
| | - Connor Kaurich
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
| | - Zi Chen
- Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, United States
| | - Mingxia Gu
- Division of Pulmonary Biology, Center for Stem Cell and Organoid Medicine (CuSTOM), Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, United States
- University of Cincinnati School of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, United States
| | - Andrea G. Hohmann
- Gill Center for Biomolecular Science, and Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
| | - Ken Mackie
- Gill Center for Biomolecular Science, and Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
| | - Feng Guo
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, United States
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Lavrenteva E, Theodoropoulos C, Binns M. Analytical Models of Intra- and Extratumoral Cell Interactions at Avascular Stage of Growth in the Presence of Targeted Chemotherapy. Bioengineering (Basel) 2023; 10:bioengineering10030385. [PMID: 36978776 PMCID: PMC10045748 DOI: 10.3390/bioengineering10030385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Revised: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
In this study, we propose a set of nonlinear differential equations to model the dynamic growth of avascular stage tumors, considering nutrient supply from underlying tissue, innate immune response, contact inhibition of cell migration, and interactions with a chemotherapeutic agent. The model has been validated against available experimental data from the literature for tumor growth. We assume that the size of the modeled tumor is already detectable, and it represents all clinically observed existent cell populations; initial conditions are selected accordingly. Numerical results indicate that the tumor size and regression significantly depend on the strength of the host immune system. The effect of chemotherapy is investigated, not only within the malignancy, but also in terms of the responding immune cells and healthy tissue in the vicinity of a tumor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evgeniia Lavrenteva
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Dongguk University-Seoul, 30 Pildong-ro 1-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04620, Republic of Korea
| | - Constantinos Theodoropoulos
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Biochemical and Bioprocess Engineering Group, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Michael Binns
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Dongguk University-Seoul, 30 Pildong-ro 1-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04620, Republic of Korea
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Gresseau L, Roy ME, Duhamel S, Annabi B. A Signaling Crosstalk Links SNAIL to the 37/67 kDa Laminin-1 Receptor Ribosomal Protein SA and Regulates the Acquisition of a Cancer Stem Cell Molecular Signature in U87 Glioblastoma Neurospheres. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:5944. [PMID: 36497426 PMCID: PMC9738384 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14235944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Revised: 11/26/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Three-dimensional in vitro neurospheres cultures recapitulate stemness features associated with poor clinical outcome in glioblastoma patients. They are commonly used to address brain cancer stem cell (CSC) signal transducing biology that regulates spheroids formation and stemness phenotype, and to assess the in vitro pharmacological impact of chemotherapeutic drugs. Objective: Here, we addressed the role of a new signaling axis involved in the regulation of in vitro spheroids formation and assessed the chemopreventive ability of diet-derived epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) to impact the processes that govern the acquisition of spheroids CSC stemness traits. Methods: Neurospheres were generated from adherent human U87 glioblastoma cancer cell cultures under conditions that recapitulate stemness features. Total RNA and protein lysates were isolated for gene expression by RT-qPCR and protein expression by immunoblot. Transcriptomic analysis was performed through RNA-Seq. Results: Compared to their parental adherent cells, tumorspheres expressed increased levels of the CSC markers NANOG, SOX2, PROM1 (CD133), as well as of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers Fibronectin, SNAI1, and 37/67 kDa laminin-1 receptor ribosomal protein SA (RPSA). Increased PROM1, SOX2, Fibronectin, and RPSA transcripts level were also observed in clinical grade IV glioblastoma tissues compared to normal tissue. EGCG treatment reduced dose-dependently tumorspheres size and inhibited the transcriptional regulation of those genes. An apoptotic signature was also found in spheroids with increased signal transducing events involving GSK3α/β, RSK, and CREB. These were repressed upon RPSA gene silencing and partially by SNAI1 silencing. Conclusion: This work highlights a signaling axis linking RPSA upstream of SNAIL in neurospheres genesis and supports the chemopreventive impact that diet-derived EGCG may exert on the acquisition of CSC traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loraine Gresseau
- Laboratoire d’Oncologie Moléculaire, Département de Chimie, and CERMO-FC, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montreal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada
| | - Marie-Eve Roy
- Laboratoire d’Oncologie Moléculaire, Département de Chimie, and CERMO-FC, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montreal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada
| | - Stéphanie Duhamel
- Goodman Cancer Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 0G4, Canada
| | - Borhane Annabi
- Laboratoire d’Oncologie Moléculaire, Département de Chimie, and CERMO-FC, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montreal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada
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Jafari Nivlouei S, Soltani M, Carvalho J, Travasso R, Salimpour MR, Shirani E. Multiscale modeling of tumor growth and angiogenesis: Evaluation of tumor-targeted therapy. PLoS Comput Biol 2021; 17:e1009081. [PMID: 34161319 PMCID: PMC8259971 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Revised: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The dynamics of tumor growth and associated events cover multiple time and spatial scales, generally including extracellular, cellular and intracellular modifications. The main goal of this study is to model the biological and physical behavior of tumor evolution in presence of normal healthy tissue, considering a variety of events involved in the process. These include hyper and hypoactivation of signaling pathways during tumor growth, vessels' growth, intratumoral vascularization and competition of cancer cells with healthy host tissue. The work addresses two distinctive phases in tumor development-the avascular and vascular phases-and in each stage two cases are considered-with and without normal healthy cells. The tumor growth rate increases considerably as closed vessel loops (anastomoses) form around the tumor cells resulting from tumor induced vascularization. When taking into account the host tissue around the tumor, the results show that competition between normal cells and cancer cells leads to the formation of a hypoxic tumor core within a relatively short period of time. Moreover, a dense intratumoral vascular network is formed throughout the entire lesion as a sign of a high malignancy grade, which is consistent with reported experimental data for several types of solid carcinomas. In comparison with other mathematical models of tumor development, in this work we introduce a multiscale simulation that models the cellular interactions and cell behavior as a consequence of the activation of oncogenes and deactivation of gene signaling pathways within each cell. Simulating a therapy that blocks relevant signaling pathways results in the prevention of further tumor growth and leads to an expressive decrease in its size (82% in the simulation).
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Affiliation(s)
- Sahar Jafari Nivlouei
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isafahan, Iran
- CFisUC, Department of Physics, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - M. Soltani
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering (CBB), University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
- Advanced Bioengineering Initiative Center, Computational Medicine Center, K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Cancer Institute of Iran, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - João Carvalho
- CFisUC, Department of Physics, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Rui Travasso
- CFisUC, Department of Physics, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | | | - Ebrahim Shirani
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isafahan, Iran
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Foolad Institute of Technology, Fooladshahr, Iran
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Abstract
Dermal interstitial fluid (ISF) is a novel source of biomarkers that can be considered as an alternative to blood sampling for disease diagnosis and treatment. Nevertheless, in vivo extraction and analysis of ISF are challenging. On the other hand, microneedle (MN) technology can address most of the challenges associated with dermal ISF extraction and is well suited for long-term, continuous ISF monitoring as well as in situ detection. In this review, we first briefly summarise the different dermal ISF collection methods and compare them with MN methods. Next, we elaborate on the design considerations and biocompatibility of MNs. Subsequently, the fabrication technologies of various MNs used for dermal ISF extraction, including solid MNs, hollow MNs, porous MNs, and hydrogel MNs, are thoroughly explained. In addition, different sensing mechanisms of ISF detection are discussed in detail. Subsequently, we identify the challenges and propose the possible solutions associated with ISF extraction. A detailed investigation is provided for the transport and sampling mechanism of ISF in vivo. Also, the current in vitro skin model integrated with the MN arrays is discussed. Finally, future directions to develop a point-of-care (POC) device to sample ISF are proposed.
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Hajari MA, Baheri Islami S, Chen X. A numerical study on tumor-on-chip performance and its optimization for nanodrug-based combination therapy. Biomech Model Mechanobiol 2021; 20:983-1002. [PMID: 33521884 DOI: 10.1007/s10237-021-01426-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Microfluidic devices, such as the tumor-on-a-chip (ToC), allow for the delivery of multiple drugs as desired for various therapies such as cancer treatment. Due to the complexity involved, visualizing, and gaining knowledge of the performance of such devices through experimentation alone is difficult if not impossible. In this paper, we performed a numerical simulation study on ToC performance, which focuses on the ability to combine multiple nanodrugs and optimized ToC performance. The numerical simulations of the chip performance were performed based on the typical chip design and operating parameters, as well as the established governing equations, boundary conditions, and fluid-structure interaction. The effect of cell injection time and position, inlet flow rate, number of inlets, medium viscosity, and cell concentration on the chip performance in terms of shear stress and cell distribution were examined. The results illustrate the profound effect of operation parameters, thus allowing for rigorously determining operational parameters to prevent spheroids ejection from microwells and to restrict the shear stresses within a physiological range. Also, the results show that triple-inlets can increase the uniformity of cell distribution in comparison with single or double inlets. Based on the simulation results, the architecture of the primary ToC was further optimized, resulting in a novel design that enables applying multiple, yet simultaneous, nanodrugs with optimal drug combination as desired for an individual patient. Furthermore, our simulations on the optimized chip showed a uniform cell distribution required for uniform-sized tumor spheroids generation, and complete medium exchange. Taken together, this study not only illustrates that numerical simulations are effective to visualize the ToCs performance, but also develops a novel ToC design optimized for nanodrug-based combination therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sima Baheri Islami
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran.,Department of Mechanical Engineering and Division of Biomedical Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Xiongbiao Chen
- Department of Mechanical Engineering and Division of Biomedical Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.
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Ozawa S, Miura T, Terashima J, Habano W, Ishida S. Recent Progress in Prediction Systems for Drug-induced Liver Injury Using in vitro Cell Culture. Drug Metab Lett 2020; 14:25-40. [PMID: 33267768 DOI: 10.2174/1872312814666201202112610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Revised: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 11/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In order to avoid drug-induced liver injury (DILI), in vitro assays, which enable the assessment of both metabolic activation and immune reaction processes that ultimately result in DILI, are needed. OBJECTIVE In this study, the recent progress in the application of in vitro assays using cell culture systems is reviewed for potential DILI-causing drugs/xenobiotics and a mechanistic study on DILI, as well as for the limitations of in vitro cell culture systems for DILI research. METHODS Information related to DILI was collected through a literature search of the PubMed database. RESULTS The initial biological event for the onset of DILI is the formation of cellular protein adducts after drugs have been metabolically activated by drug metabolizing enzymes. The damaged peptides derived from protein adducts lead to the activation of CD4+ helper T lymphocytes and recognition by CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes, which destroy hepatocytes through immunological reactions. Because DILI is a major cause of drug attrition and drug withdrawal, numerous in vitro systems consisting of hepatocytes and immune/inflammatory cells, or spheroids of human primary hepatocytes containing non-parenchymal cells have been developed. These cellular-based systems have identified DILIinducing drugs with approximately 50% sensitivity and 90% specificity. CONCLUSION Different co-culture systems consisting of human hepatocyte-derived cells and other immune/inflammatory cells have enabled the identification of DILI-causing drugs and of the actual mechanisms of action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shogo Ozawa
- Department of Clinical Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacodynamics and Molecular Genetics, School of Pharmacy, Iwate Medical University, Yahaba. Japan
| | - Toshitaka Miura
- Department of Clinical Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacodynamics and Molecular Genetics, School of Pharmacy, Iwate Medical University, Yahaba. Japan
| | - Jun Terashima
- Department of Clinical Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacodynamics and Molecular Genetics, School of Pharmacy, Iwate Medical University, Yahaba. Japan
| | - Wataru Habano
- Department of Clinical Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacodynamics and Molecular Genetics, School of Pharmacy, Iwate Medical University, Yahaba. Japan
| | - Seiichi Ishida
- Department of Pharmacology, National Institute of Health Sciences, Kawasaki. Japan
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RhoA and Rac1 in Liver Cancer Cells: Induction of Overexpression Using Mechanical Stimulation. MICROMACHINES 2020; 11:mi11080729. [PMID: 32731493 PMCID: PMC7463892 DOI: 10.3390/mi11080729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2020] [Revised: 07/26/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Liver cancer, especially hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), is an aggressive disease with an extremely high mortality rate. Unfortunately, no promising markers are currently available for the early diagnosis of this disease. Thus, a reliable biomarker reflecting the early behaviour of the tumour will be valuable for diagnosis and treatment. The Ras homologous (Rho) GTPases, which belong to the small guanosine triphosphate (GTP) binding proteins, have been reported to play an important role in mediating liver cancer based on their important function in cytoskeletal reorganisation. These proteins can be either oncogenic or tumour suppressors. They are also associated with the acquirement of malignant features by cancer cells. The overexpression of RhoA and Rac1, members of the Rho GTPases, have been linked with carcinogenesis and the progression of different types of cancer. In the quest of elucidating the role of mechanical stimulation in the mechanobiology of liver cancer cells, this paper evaluates the effect of stretching on the expression levels of RhoA and Rac1 in different types of liver cancers. It is shown that that stretching liver cancer cells significantly increases the expression levels of RhoA and Rac1 in HCC and cholangiocarcinoma cell lines. We hypothesise that this relatively simple and sensitive method could be helpful for screening biological features and provide suitable treatment guidance for liver cancer patients.
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Kareliotis G, Tremi I, Kaitatzi M, Drakaki E, Serafetinides AA, Makropoulou M, Georgakilas AG. Combined radiation strategies for novel and enhanced cancer treatment. Int J Radiat Biol 2020; 96:1087-1103. [PMID: 32602416 DOI: 10.1080/09553002.2020.1787544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Numerous studies focus on cancer therapy worldwide, and although many advances have been recorded, the complexity of the disease dictates thinking out of the box to confront it. This study reviews some of the currently available ionizing (IR) and non-ionizing radiation (NIR)-based treatment methods and explores their possible combinations that lead to synergistic, multimodal approaches with promising therapeutic outcomes. Traditional techniques, like radiotherapy (RT) show decent results, although they cannot spare 100% the healthy tissues neighboring with the cancer ones. Targeted therapies, such as proton and photodynamic therapy (PT and PDT, respectively) present adequate outcomes, even though each one has its own drawbacks. To overcome these limitations, the combination of therapeutic modalities has been proposed and has already been showing promising results. At the same time, the recent advances in nanotechnology in the form of nanoparticles enhance cancer therapy, making multimodal treatments worthy of exploring and studying. The combination of RT and PDT has reached the level of clinical trials and is showing promising results. Moreover, in vitro and in vivo studies of nanoparticles with PDT have also provided beneficial results concerning enhanced radiation treatments. In any case, novel and multimodal approaches have to be adopted to achieve personalized, enhanced and effective cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgios Kareliotis
- Department of Physics, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Athens, Greece
| | - Ioanna Tremi
- Department of Physics, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Athens, Greece
| | - Myrsini Kaitatzi
- Department of Physics, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Athens, Greece
| | - Eleni Drakaki
- Department of Physics, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Athens, Greece
| | - Alexandros A Serafetinides
- Department of Physics, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Athens, Greece
| | - Mersini Makropoulou
- Department of Physics, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Athens, Greece
| | - Alexandros G Georgakilas
- Department of Physics, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Athens, Greece
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11
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Ao Z, Cai H, Havert DJ, Wu Z, Gong Z, Beggs JM, Mackie K, Guo F. One-Stop Microfluidic Assembly of Human Brain Organoids To Model Prenatal Cannabis Exposure. Anal Chem 2020; 92:4630-4638. [PMID: 32070103 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c00205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Prenatal cannabis exposure (PCE) influences human brain development, but it is challenging to model PCE using animals and current cell culture techniques. Here, we developed a one-stop microfluidic platform to assemble and culture human cerebral organoids from human embryonic stem cells (hESC) to investigate the effect of PCE on early human brain development. By incorporating perfusable culture chambers, air-liquid interface, and one-stop protocol, this microfluidic platform can simplify the fabrication procedure and produce a large number of organoids (169 organoids per 3.5 cm × 3.5 cm device area) without fusion, as compared with conventional fabrication methods. These one-stop microfluidic assembled cerebral organoids not only recapitulate early human brain structure, biology, and electrophysiology but also have minimal size variation and hypoxia. Under on-chip exposure to the psychoactive cannabinoid, Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cerebral organoids exhibited reduced neuronal maturation, downregulation of cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1) receptors, and impaired neurite outgrowth. Moreover, transient on-chip THC treatment also decreased spontaneous firing in these organoids. This one-stop microfluidic technique enables a simple, scalable, and repeatable organoid culture method that can be used not only for human brain organoids but also for many other human organoids including liver, kidney, retina, and tumor organoids. This technology could be widely used in modeling brain and other organ development, developmental disorders, developmental pharmacology and toxicology, and drug screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Ao
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Hongwei Cai
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Daniel J Havert
- Department of Physics, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Zhuhao Wu
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Zhiyi Gong
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - John M Beggs
- Department of Physics, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Ken Mackie
- Gill Center for Biomolecular Science, and Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Feng Guo
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
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12
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Stem-Like Cancer Cells in a Dynamic 3D Culture System: A Model to Study Metastatic Cell Adhesion and Anti-Cancer Drugs. Cells 2019; 8:cells8111434. [PMID: 31766310 PMCID: PMC6912649 DOI: 10.3390/cells8111434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2019] [Revised: 11/06/2019] [Accepted: 11/09/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Metastatic spread is mainly sustained by cancer stem cells (CSC), a subpopulation of cancer cells that displays stemness features. CSC are thought to be derived from cancer cells that undergo epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), thus acquiring resistance to anoikis and anti-cancer drugs. After detachment from the primary tumor mass, CSC reach the blood and lymphatic flow, and disseminate to the target tissue. This process is by nature dynamic and in vitro models are quite far from the in vivo situation. In this study, we have tried to reproduce the adhesion process of CSC to a target tissue by using a 3D dynamic cell culture system. We isolated two populations of 3D tumor spheroids displaying CSC-like features from breast carcinoma (MCF-7) and lung carcinoma (A549) cell lines. Human fibroblasts were layered on a polystyrene scaffold placed in a dynamically perfused millifluidic system and then the adhesion of tumor cell derived from spheroids to fibroblasts was investigated under continuous perfusion. After 24 h of perfusion, we found that spheroid cells tightly adhered to fibroblasts layered on the scaffold, as assessed by a scanning electron microscope (SEM). To further investigate mechanisms involved in spheroid cell adhesion to fibroblasts, we tested the effect of three RGD integrin antagonists with different molecular structures on cell adhesion; when injected into the circuit, only cilengitide was able to inhibit cell adhesion to fibroblasts. Although our model needs further refinements and improvements, we do believe this study could represent a promising approach in improving current models to study metastatic infiltration in vitro and a new tool to screen new potential anti-metastatic molecules.
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