Project description:Breast cancer cells reprogram the oncogenic lncRNAs/mRNAs co-expression networks in three- dimensional microenvironment To have a more functional approach, organotypic 3D cell cultures that more accurately mimic the characteristics of solid tumors in vivo and the tumor microenvironment are required. In this study, DNA microarrays were employed to deline the changes in lncRNAs expression patterns of breast cancer cells, cultured in 3D and 2D conditions from BT-474 cell line. Furthermore, potential lncRNAs/mRNAs pairs co-expressed in 3D cultures exhibit a high degree of similarity with those found in luminal B breast cancer patients suggesting that they could be adequate pre-clinical tools to identify, not only biomarkers related to endocrine therapy response and PCR, but to understand the biological behavior of cancer cells in 3D microenvironments, which point towards an important contribution of the roles of lncRNAs in organotypic 3D cultures.
Project description:Three-Dimensional Organotypic Cultures Reshape the microRNAs Transcriptional Program in Breast Cancer Cells Three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures have several advantages over conventional monolayer two-dimensional (2D) cultures as they can better mimic tumor biology. This study delineated the changes in microRNA (miRNA) expression patterns of breast cancer cells cultured in 3D and 2D conditions. 3D organotypic cultures showed morphological changes such as cell–cell and cell–extracellular matrix interactions associated with a loss of polarity and reorganization on bulk structures in both basal Hs578T and luminal T47D breast cancer cells. Data indicate that down-regulated miRNAs in Hs578T 3D cultures, relative to the 2D condition, contribute to a positive regulation of biological processes such as response to hypoxia and focal adhesion, whereas over-expressed miRNAs were related to negative regulation of the cell cycle. Remarkably, the repro-gramming of miRNAs’ transcriptional profiles was accompanied by changes in the expression of key miRNA/mRNA coregulation networks, such as miR-935/HIF-1A, which correlated with the expression found in clinical breast tumors and predicted poor patient outcomes. These data have implications in our understanding of cancer biology and impact the miRNA/mRNA regulatory axes of cells grown in 3D cultures. Our data represent a guide for novel miRNA candidates for functional analysis, including the response to therapy and biomarker discovery in breast cancer.
Project description:Expression data from HepG2 cultured in 2D monolayer cultures and 3D Matrigel cultures We performed this study to understand differences in gene expression profiles of 2D and 3D HepG2 cultures
Project description:Background. Fallopian tube secretory epithelial cells (FTSECs) have been implicated as a cell-of-origin for high-grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer. However, there are relatively few in vitro models of this tissue type available for use in studies of FTSEC biology and malignant transformation. In vitro three-dimensional (3D) cell culture models aim to recreate the architecture and geometry of tissues in vivo and restore the complex network of cell-cell/cell-matrix interactions that occur throughout the surface of the cell membrane. Results. We have established and characterized 3D spheroid culture models of primary FTSECs. FTSEC spheroids contain central cores of hyaline matrix surrounded by mono- or multi-layer epithelial sheets. We found that 3D culturing alters the molecular characteristics of FTSECs compared to 2D cultures of the same cells. Gene expression profiling identified more than a thousand differentially expressed genes between 3D and 2D cultures of the same FTSEC lines. Pathways significantly under-represented in 3D FTSEC cultures were associated with cell cycle progression and DNA replication. This was also reflected in the reduced proliferative indices observed in 3D spheroids stained for the proliferation marker MIB1. Comparisons with gene expression profiles of fresh fallopian tube tissues revealed that 2D FTSEC cultures clustered with follicular phase tubal epithelium, whereas 3D FTSEC cultures clustered with luteal phase samples. Conclusions. This 3D model of fallopian tube secretory epithelial cells will advance our ability to study the underlying biology and etiology of fallopian tube tissues and the pathogenesis of high-grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer. 3 primary FTSEC lines were plated in 2D, or in 3D on polyHEMA coated plates
Project description:3D spheroid cultures of primary human hepatocytes (PHH) are used in studies of hepatic drug metabolism and toxicity. However, the 3D spheroids are maintained under different conditions, with possible cofounding results. Here we performed an in-depth analysis of how various culture conditions influence 3D spheroids. Our aim was to find optimal conditions for the maintenance of a normal PHH phenotype.
Project description:Background: Fallopian tube secretory epithelial cells (FTSECs) have been implicated as a cell-of-origin for high-grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer. However, there are relatively few in vitro models of this tissue type available for use in studies of FTSEC biology and malignant transformation. In vitro three-dimensional (3D) cell culture models aim to recreate the architecture and geometry of tissues in vivo and restore the complex network of cell-cell/cell-matrix interactions that occur throughout the surface of the cell membrane. Results: We have established and characterized 3D spheroid culture models of primary FTSECs. FTSEC spheroids contain central cores of hyaline matrix surrounded by mono- or multi-layer epithelial sheets. We found that 3D culturing alters the molecular characteristics of FTSECs compared to 2D cultures of the same cells. Gene expression profiling identified more than a thousand differentially expressed genes between 3D and 2D cultures of the same FTSEC lines. Pathways significantly under-represented in 3D FTSEC cultures were associated with cell cycle progression and DNA replication. This was also reflected in the reduced proliferative indices observed in 3D spheroids stained for the proliferation marker MIB1. Comparisons with gene expression profiles of fresh fallopian tube tissues revealed that 2D FTSEC cultures clustered with follicular phase tubal epithelium, whereas 3D FTSEC cultures clustered with luteal phase samples. Conclusions: This 3D model of fallopian tube secretory epithelial cells will advance our ability to study the underlying biology and etiology of fallopian tube tissues and the pathogenesis of high-grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer.
Project description:Commonly used monolayer cell cultures lack the capacity to provide a physiologically relevant environment for cell culture in terms of cell-cell architecture, extracellular matrix composition, and spatiotemporal delivery of key growth factors and small molecules, such as oxygen. Here, we describe a three-dimensional (3D) approach to cell culture in vitro, utilizing a bioreactor system designed to control oxygenation of 3D cancer cell cultures, in order to better mimic tumor microenvironments observed in vivo. We found transcriptomic differences in breast and ovarian cancer cell cultures grown in traditional monolayer cultures as compared to cultures grown in a Matrigel three-dimensional matrix. We also investigated the transcriptomes of 3D cultures grown in 21% O2, 3% O2, and a gradient of 3% O2 to 0% O2 using our bioreactor system. By controlling oxygen delivery, we observed differences in cell growth morphology and transcriptome regulation under the three conditions.
Project description:Spatial transcriptomics has been widely used to capture gene expression profiles, which are realised as a two-dimensional (2D) projection of RNA captured from tissue sections. Three-dimensional (3D) cultures such as spheroids and organoids are highly promising alternatives to overly simplistic and homogeneous 2D cell culture models, but existing spatial transcriptomic platforms do not have sufficient resolution and RNA capture efficiency for robust analysis of 3D cultures. We present a transfection-based method for fluorescent DNA barcoding of cell populations, and the subsequent construction of spheroidal cellular architectures using barcoded cells in a layer-by-layer approach. For the first time, changes in gene expression throughout this 3D culture architecture are interrogated using multiplex single-cell RNA sequencing in which DNA barcodes encode the spatial positioning of cells. We show that transfection with fluorophore-conjugated barcode oligonucleotides enables both imaging and sequencing at single-cell resolution, providing spatial maps of gene expression and drug response. Additionally, we show that fluorescently-tagged DNA barcodes support correlative imaging studies such as quantitative microelastography (QME) to capture information about mechanical heterogeneity in 3D cultures, also with spatial resolution. The ability to create customised, spatially encoded cellular assemblies is a general approach that can resolve spatial differences in gene expression in 3D cell culture models.