Preclinical Testing Techniques: Paving the Way for New Oncology Screening Approaches

Prior to clinical trials, preclinical testing of oncology drug candidates is performed by evaluating drug candidates with in vitro and in vivo platforms. For in vivo testing, animal models are used to evaluate the toxicity and efficacy of drug candidates. However, animal models often display poor translational results as many drugs that pass preclinical testing fail when tested with humans, with oncology drugs exhibiting especially poor acceptance rates. The FDA Modernization Act 2.0 promotes alternative preclinical testing techniques, presenting the opportunity to use higher complexity in vitro models as an alternative to in vivo testing, including three-dimensional (3D) cell culture models. Three-dimensional tissue cultures address many of the shortcomings of 2D cultures by more closely replicating the tumour microenvironment through a combination of physiologically relevant drug diffusion, paracrine signalling, cellular phenotype, and vascularization that can better mimic native human tissue. This review will discuss the common forms of 3D cell culture, including cell spheroids, organoids, organs-on-a-chip, and 3D bioprinted tissues. Their advantages and limitations will be presented, aiming to discuss the use of these 3D models to accurately represent human tissue and as an alternative to animal testing. The use of 3D culture platforms for preclinical drug development is expected to accelerate as these platforms continue to improve in complexity, reliability, and translational predictivity.

Smart Dual-Sensor Wound Dressing for Monitoring Cutaneous Wounds

Managing slow-healing wounds and associated complications is challenging, time-consuming, and expensive. Systematic collection, analysis, and dissemination of correct wound status data are critical for enhancing healing outcomes and reducing complications. However, traditional data collection approaches are often neither accurate nor user-friendly and require diverse skill levels, resulting in the collection of inconsistent and unreliable data. As an advancement to the authors' previously developed hydrogel-based smart wound dressing, here is reported an enhanced integration of drug delivery and sensing (pH and glucose) modules for accelerated treatment and continuous monitoring of cutaneous wounds. In the current study, growth factor delivery modules and an array of colorimetric glucose sensors are incorporated into the dressing to promote wound healing and extend the dressing's utility for diabetic wound treatment. Furthermore, the efficacy of the wound dressing in monitoring infection and supporting wound healing via antibiotic and growth factor delivery is investigated in mice models. The updated dressing reveals excellent healing benefits on non-infected and infected wounds, as well as real-time monitoring and early detection of wound infection.