Scholarlink

Background <p>The tumor microenvironment (TME) is a complex network of cellular and acellular participants, each of which contributes to ensuring tumor growth. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) represent a key TME population that actively participates in stromal remodeling and metabolic coupling with tumors, significantly favoring both the process of carcinogenesis and the establishment of metastasis. Therefore, developing therapies that target CAFs constitute valuable therapeutic alternatives. However, efficiently modeling the generation of CAFs in the tumor microenvironment is challenging.</p> Methods <p>We constructed a 3D structure of the tumor microenvironment (TME), which we refer to as “TME spheroids”. These spheroids are composed of 4T1 murine breast cancer cells and 3T3 murine fibroblasts, allowing us to mimic the development of a cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype. This novel 3D model serves as a platform for evaluating the impact of two natural extracts on TME interactions and their ability to impede tumor progression.</p> Results <p>Using the TME-spheroid model, we tested the effects of two extracts on CAF generation: Anamu-SC obtained from <i>Petiveria alliacea</i> and P2Et from <i>Caesalpinia spinosa</i>. Both extracts disrupted the interaction between tumor cells and fibroblasts, reducing the ability of CAFs to support tumor growth and spread.</p> Conclusions <p>We found that the two extracts interfere with circuits that drive tumor-fibroblast crosstalk, attenuating the phenotype and functional activities associated with CAFs in this TME model.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Petiveria alliacea and Caesalpinia spinosa extracts reduce the generation of cancer-associated fibroblasts in a 3D platform representative of the tumor microenvironment

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2025年7月2日

查看全文
  • María Camila Jimenez,
  • Paola Lasso,
  • Susana Fiorentino,
  • Alfonso Barreto

摘要

Background

The tumor microenvironment (TME) is a complex network of cellular and acellular participants, each of which contributes to ensuring tumor growth. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) represent a key TME population that actively participates in stromal remodeling and metabolic coupling with tumors, significantly favoring both the process of carcinogenesis and the establishment of metastasis. Therefore, developing therapies that target CAFs constitute valuable therapeutic alternatives. However, efficiently modeling the generation of CAFs in the tumor microenvironment is challenging.

Methods

We constructed a 3D structure of the tumor microenvironment (TME), which we refer to as “TME spheroids”. These spheroids are composed of 4T1 murine breast cancer cells and 3T3 murine fibroblasts, allowing us to mimic the development of a cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype. This novel 3D model serves as a platform for evaluating the impact of two natural extracts on TME interactions and their ability to impede tumor progression.

Results

Using the TME-spheroid model, we tested the effects of two extracts on CAF generation: Anamu-SC obtained from Petiveria alliacea and P2Et from Caesalpinia spinosa. Both extracts disrupted the interaction between tumor cells and fibroblasts, reducing the ability of CAFs to support tumor growth and spread.

Conclusions

We found that the two extracts interfere with circuits that drive tumor-fibroblast crosstalk, attenuating the phenotype and functional activities associated with CAFs in this TME model.