This study aimed to develop a 3D microfluidic cell culture that stimulate cancer metastasis, providing a more cost-effective and time-efficient alternative to animal models for cancer research. Human breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) were used to create tumor spheroids and were analyzed under static conditions to confirm their clinical relevance. The spheroids were induced to undergo EMT using TGF-β1, a cytokine known to induce EMT in cancer development, and the transitions were monitored with a confocal microscope. The spheroids were then cultured in a 3D microfluidic cell culture system, mimicking the metastatic tumor microenvironment. Live-cell imaging revealed the spheroids underwent EMT after four days of culturing under perfusion, as opposed to at least days of culturing for the EMT to happen under static conditions. Furthermore, the metastatic spheroids could exit from the original gel matrix and invade another gel matrix, just like cancer cells moving from the primary tumor site to the secondary tumor site. These findings demonstrate the potential of the in vitro model as a powerful tool for developing precision medicine, providing new avenues for studying cancer development and metastasis, drug screening, and drug delivery.

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Developing a 3D Microfluidic Model of Metastatic Tumor Microenvironment

  • Ivan Su,
  • Bill Cheng

摘要

This study aimed to develop a 3D microfluidic cell culture that stimulate cancer metastasis, providing a more cost-effective and time-efficient alternative to animal models for cancer research. Human breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) were used to create tumor spheroids and were analyzed under static conditions to confirm their clinical relevance. The spheroids were induced to undergo EMT using TGF-β1, a cytokine known to induce EMT in cancer development, and the transitions were monitored with a confocal microscope. The spheroids were then cultured in a 3D microfluidic cell culture system, mimicking the metastatic tumor microenvironment. Live-cell imaging revealed the spheroids underwent EMT after four days of culturing under perfusion, as opposed to at least days of culturing for the EMT to happen under static conditions. Furthermore, the metastatic spheroids could exit from the original gel matrix and invade another gel matrix, just like cancer cells moving from the primary tumor site to the secondary tumor site. These findings demonstrate the potential of the in vitro model as a powerful tool for developing precision medicine, providing new avenues for studying cancer development and metastasis, drug screening, and drug delivery.