Name: self-reporting scaffolds for 3-dimensional cell culture
Uploaded: 2013-11-07T19:15:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Self-reporting Scaffolds for 3-Dimensional Cell Culture at JoVE.com

Funding from the BBSRC is kindly acknowledged (grant number BB H011293/1).

Overview
Section 1 describes the preparation of pH responsive nanosensors and characterization of nanosensor response to pH using fluorescence spectrometry and their size using SEM.
Section 2 describes the preparation of electrospun polymer scaffolds and characterization of their morphology and size using SEM. Section 2 also describes the preparation of self-reporting scaffolds which are electrospun scaffolds with the inclusion of the pH responsive nanosensors. The res...

<ol>
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Tissue engineering aspires to create biological substitutes that can be used both as in vivo like in vitro tissue models and in tissue replacement therapy to repair, replace, maintain or enhance the function of a particular tissue or organ. Synthetic substitutes have been used for many years to replace or aid repair of tissues but these often fail due to poor integration with the host tissue and/or infection, which ultimately leads to rejection or further revision surgery. Generating living tissue in th...

A key strategy in tissue engineering is the use of biocompatible materials to fabricate scaffolds whose morphology resembles the tissue that it is going to replace and is also capable of supporting cell growth and function1,2. The scaffold provides mechanical support by allowing cell attachment and proliferation yet allows cell migration throughout the interstices of a 3D cellular construct. The scaffold must also allow for the mass transport of cell nutrients and not inhibit removal of metabolic waste3.
Electrospinning has emerged as a promising method for the fabrication of polymeric scaffolds capable of supporting cellular growth4-6. The nonwoven electrospun fibers produced are suitable for cell growth as they are often porous and allow cell-cell interaction as well as cell migration throughout the interstices of a 3D cellular construct7. It is important to monitor cell viability during the period of culture and to ensure that cell viability is maintained throughout the whole of the 3D construct. For example, culture conditions such as oxygen and pH require careful control, as gradients in analyte concentration can exist within the 3D construct. Bioreactors or perfusion systems can be employed to mimic in&#160;vivo conditions of interstitial flow and as a result increase nutrient transfer and metabolic waste removal8. The question of whether such systems are ensuring constant microenvironmental conditions can be addressed by assessing the cellular microenvironment in real-time.
Key microenvironment metrics that could be monitored in real-time include: temperature, chemical composition of cell media, concentration of dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, pH, and humidity. Of these metrics, temperature can be most readily monitored using in situ probes. Methods for monitoring the remaining listed metrics commonly involve removal of an aliquot for sampling and therefore disturb the cell culture and increase the contamination risk. Continuous, real-time methods are being sought. Current monitoring methods usually rely upon instruments that physically probe the cellular construct such as a pH monitor or oxygen probe. However, these intrusive methods can damage the cellular construct and disturb the ongoing experiment. Noninvasive monitoring of analyte concentrations within the 3D construct could enable real-time monitoring of various environmental aspects such as nutrient depletion9. This would allow assessment of nutrient supply to deeper regions within the structure and determine whether metabolic waste was being removed effectively10,11. Systems that attempt to address the issue of invasiveness generally involve the use of a perfusion chamber that passes culture medium through both the culture vessel and to external sensors to monitor pH, oxygen and glucose12. There is increasing interest in developing sensors that can be directly integrated into the culture vessel that do not require removal of an aliquot for sampling and as such would provide in&#160;situ monitoring.
To address such shortcomings for in&#160;situ and noninvasive monitoring of microenvironmental conditions we have incorporated analyte responsive nanosensors into electrospun scaffolds to produce self-reporting scaffolds13. Scaffolds that act as sensing devices by monitoring fluorescence activity have been prepared previously, where the sensing device was either the actual polymeric scaffold created by electrospinning or through the use of an analyte responsive dye which is incorporated into the polymer prior to scaffold formation14,15. However, these sensing devices have the potential to give erroneous optical outputs caused by possible interference from other analytes. The use of a ratiometric sensing device such as those prepared in the described protocol holds the potential to eliminate these possible adverse effects and provide a response specific to the analyte in question.
The electrospun scaffolds presented here have been prepared from the synthetic co-polymer poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), selected due to having Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, owing to its biodegradable and biocompatible properties and a track record of supporting the growth and function of various cell types16-18. The prepared ratiometric analyte responsive nanosensors are responsive to pH. The nanosensors incorporate two fluorescent dyes into a biocompatible sol-gel matrix where one dye, FAM is responsive to pH and the other, TAMRA acts as an internal standard as it is not responsive to pH. Furthermore the fluorescence of both FAM and TAMRA can be analyzed separately as they do not significantly overlap. Determining the ratio of the fluorescence emission of both dyes at specific wavelengths gives a pH response independent of other environmental conditions. The self-reporting scaffolds could allow repeat assessment of pH in situ and in real-time without disrupting the developed 3D model. We have demonstrated that these scaffolds are capable of supporting cell attachment and proliferation and remain responsive to the analyte in question. The kinetics of acidic by-products in engineered constructs remains understudied and as such using the pH responsive scaffolds could greatly facilitate such studies19. Furthermore, the use of the self-reporting scaffolds for tissue engineering applications presents the opportunity to fully understand, monitor and optimize the growth of 3D model tissue constructs in vitro, noninvasively and in real-time.
The pH responsive nanosensors have also been delivered to the intracellular environment of fibroblasts cultured upon electrospun PLGA scaffolds. The ratio of the fluorescence emission from the dyes were used to monitor pHi and compared to a self-reporting scaffold incorporating pH nanosensors. The delivery of nanosensors to cells cultured in a 3D environment could enable monitoring of analyte concentration deep within the construct in a nondestructive manner. Therefore nanosensors may be a viable imaging tool to nondestructively assess cell behavior throughout 3D constructs allowing long-term analysis. Screening the analyte concentration of individual cells within a 3D construct could ensure that they are receiving sufficient nutrient and oxygen concentrations. Monitoring process parameters could assist in the development of standardized techniques for the effective mass transport of oxygen and nutrients. The delivery of nanosensors to the intracellular environment and incorporation of nanosensors into polymeric scaffolds could be combined to allow assessment of cell viability as well as scaffold performance within 3D constructs during the tissue growth process. This may lead to increased knowledge of these constructs and progress the fabrication of biologically relevant tissue substitutes.

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		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Ethanol</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Fisher</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">32221</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Anhydrous dimethylformamide (DMF)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">270547</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">Ammonium hydroxide 50% (v/v) aqueous solution</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Alfa Aesar</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">35574</td>
			<td style="width:79px;">diluted to 30% (v/v) with pure water</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">TEOS</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">13190-3</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">3-Aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">A3648</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">5-(and-6)-carboxyfluorescein, succinimidyl ester (FAM-SE)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">C1311</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">6-carboxytetramethylrhodamine, succinimidyl ester (TAMRA-SE)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">C1171</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Sodium phosphate monobasic (0.2 M)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">S-9638</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Sodium phosphate dibasic (0.2 M)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">S-0876</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">NaOH</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">S8045</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Trypsin/EDTA</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">T4174</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Penicillin/Streptomycin</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">P0781</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">PBS</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">D8537</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">DMEM</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">D6046</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">FBS</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Source Bioscience</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">Batch-213-101992</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">L-Glutamine</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">G7513</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Lipofectamine 2000</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">11668-019</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Optimem</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">11058-021</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">LysoTracker Red</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">L-7528</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Draq5</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Biostatus Ltd</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">DR50050</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Nitrogen gas</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">BOC</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">DCM</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">320269</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">TFA</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">T6508</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="211">
			<td height="211" style="height:211px;width:195px;">Confocal microscope</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Leica TCS-SP</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;">equipped with argon and krypton lasers and a 63X 0.9NA water immersion lens</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">UV light</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">UVLS28 UVP, USA</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">Stirrer plate</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">SB161-3 Jencons-PLS</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">pH meter</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Jenway model 3510</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">Rotary Evaporator</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Buchi Rotary Evaporator R200</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Centrifuge (nanosensors)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Hermle Z300</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="106">
			<td height="106" style="height:106px;width:195px;">Centrifuge (cell culture)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Thermo Scientific Heraeus Biofuge Primo</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">Vortex</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Whirlimixer Fisherbrand</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">Ultrasonicator</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">FB11021 Fisherbrand</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">Aluminum sheet</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Nottingham University</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">35mm cell culture plate</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Iwaki</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">3000035</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">10 ml syringe</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Becton Dickenson</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:195px;"></td>
			<td style="width:71px;"></td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;"></td>
			<td style="width:71px;"></td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="84">
			<td height="84" style="height:84px;width:195px;">3T3 Fibroblast cells</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">European Collection of Cell Cultures</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="63">
			<td height="63" style="height:63px;width:195px;">PLGA</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Lakeshore Biomaterials</td>
			<td>7525 DLG 7E</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;">Pyridinium formate</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>P8535</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:195px;">Trypan blue</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>T8154</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;">Sodium phosphate monobasic</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>S9638</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:195px;">Sodium phosphate dibasic</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>S5136</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:195px;">HCl</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>320331</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

self-reporting scaffolds for 3-dimensional cell culture

Culturing cells in 3D on appropriate scaffolds is thought to better mimic the in vivo microenvironment and increase cell-cell interactions. The resulting 3D cellular construct can often be more relevant to studying the molecular events and cell-cell interactions than similar experiments studied in 2D. To create effective 3D cultures with high cell viability throughout the scaffold the culture conditions such as oxygen and pH need to be carefully controlled as gradients in analyte concentration can exist throughout the 3D construct. Here we describe the methods of preparing biocompatible pH responsive sol-gel nanosensors and their incorporation into poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) electrospun scaffolds along with their subsequent preparation for the culture of mammalian cells. The pH responsive scaffolds can be used as tools to determine microenvironmental pH within a 3D cellular construct. Furthermore, we detail the delivery of pH responsive nanosensors to the intracellular environment of mammalian cells whose growth was supported by electrospun PLGA scaffolds. The cytoplasmic location of the pH responsive nanosensors can be utilized to monitor intracellular pH (pHi) during ongoing experimentation.

The size distribution of the prepared pH responsive nanosensors was characterized using SEM, where the population of nanosensors imaged were measured and found to have nanometer dimensions in the range of 240-470 nm (Figure 1A). The achievement of a narrow and reasonably small diameter is consistent with using the St&#246;ber method to prepare nanoparticles. It has been found that using a basic pH environment during the synthesis of nanoparticles i.e. nanoparticles prepared using the St&#246;ber...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Self-reporting Scaffolds for 3-Dimensional Cell Culture at JoVE.com

Self-reporting Scaffolds for 3-Dimensional Cell Culture

Biocompatible pH responsive sol-gel nanosensors can be incorporated into poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) electrospun scaffolds. The produced self-reporting scaffolds can be used for in&#160;situ monitoring of microenvironmental conditions whilst culturing cells upon the scaffold. This is beneficial as the 3D cellular construct can be monitored in real-time without disturbing the experiment.

Culturing cells in 3D on appropriate scaffolds is thought to better mimic the in vivo microenvironment and increase cell-cell interactions. The resulting ...

self-reporting-scaffolds-for-3-dimensional-cell-culture

Research

JoVE Journal

Bioengineering

Elastomeric PGS Scaffolds in Arterial Tissue Engineering

Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading cause of mortality in the US and especially, coronary artery disease increases with an aging population and increasing obesity1. Currently, bypass surgery using autologous vessels, allografts, and synthetic grafts are known as a commonly used for arterial substitutes2. However, these grafts have limited applications when an inner diameter of arteries is less than 6 mm due to low availability, thrombotic complications, compliance mismatch, and late intimal hyperplasia3,4. To overcome these limitations, tissue engineering has been successfully applied as a promising alternative to develop small-diameter arterial constructs that are nonthrombogenic, robust, and compliant. Several previous studies have developed small-diameter arterial constructs with tri-lamellar structure, excellent mechanical properties and burst pressure comparable to native arteries5,6. While high tensile strength and burst pressure by increasing collagen production from a rigid material or cell sheet scaffold, these constructs still had low elastin production and compliance, which is a major problem to cause graft failure after implantation. Considering these issues, we hypothesized that an elastometric biomaterial combined with mechanical conditioning would provide elasticity and conduct mechanical signals more efficiently to vascular cells, which increase extracellular matrix production and support cellular orientation.
The objective of this report is to introduce a fabrication technique of porous tubular scaffolds and a dynamic mechanical conditioning for applying them to arterial tissue engineering. We used a biodegradable elastomer, poly (glycerol sebacate) (PGS)7 for fabricating porous tubular scaffolds from the salt fusion method. Adult primary baboon smooth muscle cells (SMCs) were seeded on the lumen of scaffolds, which cultured in our designed pulsatile flow bioreactor for 3 weeks. PGS scaffolds had consistent thickness and randomly distributed macro- and micro-pores. Mechanical conditioning from pulsatile flow bioreactor supported SMC orientation and enhanced ECM production in scaffolds. These results suggest that elastomeric scaffolds and mechanical conditioning of bioreactor culture may be a promising method for arterial tissue engineering.

Elastomeric PGS scaffolds with vascular smooth muscle cells cultured in a pulsatile flow bioreactor may lead to promising small-diameter arterial constructs with native ECM production in a relatively short culture period.

Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading cause of mortality in the US and especially, coronary artery disease increases with an aging population and ...

A Method for Ovarian Follicle Encapsulation and Culture in a Proteolytically Degradable 3 Dimensional System

The ovarian follicle is the functional unit of the ovary that secretes sex hormones and supports oocyte maturation. In vitro follicle techniques provide a tool to model follicle development in order to investigate basic biology, and are further being developed as a technique to preserve fertility in the clinic1-4. Our in vitro culture system employs hydrogels in order to mimic the native ovarian environment by maintaining the 3D follicular architecture, cell-cell interactions and paracrine signaling that direct follicle development 5. Previously, follicles were successfully cultured in alginate, an inert algae-derived polysaccharide that undergoes gelation with calcium ions6-8. Alginate hydrogels formed at a concentration of 0.25% w/v were the most permissive for follicle culture, and retained the highest developmental competence 9. Alginate hydrogels are not degradable, thus an increase in the follicle diameter results in a compressive force on the follicle that can impact follicle growth10. We subsequently developed a culture system based on a fibrin-alginate interpenetrating network (FA-IPN), in which a mixture of fibrin and alginate are gelled simultaneously. This combination provides a dynamic mechanical environment because both components contribute to matrix rigidity initially; however, proteases secreted by the growing follicle degrade fibrin in the matrix leaving only alginate to provide support. With the IPN, the alginate content can be reduced below 0.25%, which is not possible with alginate alone 5. Thus, as the follicle expands, it will experience a reduced compressive force due to the reduced solids content. Herein, we describe an encapsulation method and an in vitro culture system for ovarian follicles within a FA-IPN. The dynamic mechanical environment mimics the natural ovarian environment in which small follicles reside in a rigid cortex and move to a more permissive medulla as they increase in size11. The degradable component may be particularly critical for clinical translation in order to support the greater than 106-fold increase in volume that human follicles normally undergo in vivo .

A new method for ovarian follicle encapsulation in a 3D fibrin-alginate interpenetrating network is described. This system combines structural support with proteolytic degradation to support the development of immature follicles to produce mature oocytes. This method may be applied to culture cell aggregates to maintain cell-cell contacts without limiting expansion.

The ovarian follicle is the functional unit of the ovary that secretes sex hormones and supports oocyte maturation. In vitro  follicle techniques provide ...

Organotypic Collagen I Assay: A Malleable Platform to Assess Cell Behaviour in a 3-Dimensional Context

Cell migration is fundamental to many aspects of biology, including development, wound healing, the cellular responses of the immune system, and metastasis of tumor cells. Migration has been studied on glass coverslips in order to make cellular dynamics amenable to investigation by light microscopy. However, it has become clear that many aspects of cell migration depend on features of the local environment including its elasticity, protein composition, and pore size, which are not faithfully represented by rigid two dimensional substrates such as glass and plastic 1. Furthermore, interaction with other cell types, including stromal fibroblasts 2 and immune cells 3, has been shown to play a critical role in promoting the invasion of cancer cells. Investigation at the molecular level has increasingly shown that molecular dynamics, including response to drug treatment, of identical cells are significantly different when compared in vitro and in vivo 4. 
Ideally, it would be best to study cell migration in its naturally occurring context in living organisms, however this is not always possible. Intermediate tissue culture systems, such as cell derived matrix, matrigel, organotypic culture (described here) tissue explants, organoids, and xenografts, are therefore important experimental intermediates. These systems approximate certain aspects of an in vivo environment but are more amenable to experimental manipulation such as use of stably transfected cell lines, drug treatment regimes, long term and high-resolution imaging. Such intermediate systems are especially useful as proving grounds to validate probes and establish parameters required to image the dynamic response of cells and fluorescent reporters prior to undertaking imaging in vivo 5. As such, they can serve an important role in reducing the need for experiments on living animals.

A method is described for the preparation of a 3-dimensional matrix consisting of collagen type I and primary human fibroblasts. This organotypic gel serves as a useful substrate to assess invasive cell migration because it mimics basic features of tissue stroma and is amenable to many forms of microscopy.

Cell migration is fundamental to many aspects of biology, including development, wound healing, the cellular responses of the immune system, and ...

Rotating Cell Culture Systems for Human Cell Culture: Human Trophoblast Cells as a Model

The field of human trophoblast research aids in understanding the complex environment established during placentation. Due to the nature of these studies, human in vivo experimentation is impossible. A combination of primary cultures, explant cultures and trophoblast cell lines1 support our understanding of invasion of the uterine wall2 and remodeling of uterine spiral arteries3,4 by extravillous trophoblast cells (EVTs), which is required for successful establishment of pregnancy. Despite the wealth of knowledge gleaned from such models, it is accepted that in vitro cell culture models using EVT-like cell lines display altered cellular properties when compared to their in vivo counterparts5,6. Cells cultured in the rotating cell culture system (RCCS) display morphological, phenotypic, and functional properties of EVT-like cell lines that more closely mimic differentiating in utero EVTs, with increased expression of genes mediating invasion (e.g. matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs)) and trophoblast differentiation7,8,9. The Saint Georges Hospital Placental cell Line-4 (SGHPL-4) (kindly donated by Dr. Guy Whitley and Dr. Judith Cartwright) is an EVT-like cell line that was used for testing in the RCCS.
The design of the RCCS culture vessel is based on the principle that organs and tissues function in a three-dimensional (3-D) environment. Due to the dynamic culture conditions in the vessel, including conditions of physiologically relevant shear, cells grown in three dimensions form aggregates based on natural cellular affinities and differentiate into organotypic tissue-like assemblies10,11,12 . The maintenance of a fluid orbit provides a low-shear, low-turbulence environment similar to conditions found in vivo. Sedimentation of the cultured cells is countered by adjusting the rotation speed of the RCCS to ensure a constant free-fall of cells. Gas exchange occurs through a permeable hydrophobic membrane located on the back of the bioreactor. Like their parental tissue in vivo, RCCS-grown cells are able to respond to chemical and molecular gradients in three dimensions (i.e. at their apical, basal, and lateral surfaces) because they are cultured on the surface of porous microcarrier beads. When grown as two-dimensional monolayers on impermeable surfaces like plastic, cells are deprived of this important communication at their basal surface. Consequently, the spatial constraints imposed by the environment profoundly affect how cells sense and decode signals from the surrounding microenvironment, thus implying an important role for the 3-D milieu13.
We have used the RCCS to engineer biologically meaningful 3-D models of various human epithelial tissues7,14,15,16. Indeed, many previous reports have demonstrated that cells cultured in the RCCS can assume physiologically relevant phenotypes that have not been possible with other models10,17-21. In summary, culture in the RCCS represents an easy, reproducible, high-throughput platform that provides large numbers of differentiated cells that are amenable to a variety of experimental manipulations. 
In the following protocol, using EVTs as an example, we clearly describe the steps required to three-dimensionally culture adherent cells in the RCCS.

Traditional, two dimensional cell culture techniques often result in altered characteristics with respect to differentiation markers, cytokines and growth factors. Three-dimensional cell culture in the rotating cell culture system (RCCS) reestablishes expression of many of these factors as shown here with an extravillous trophoblast cell line.

The field of human trophoblast research aids in  understanding the complex environment established during placentation. Due to the  nature of these ...

Preparation of 3D Fibrin Scaffolds for Stem Cell Culture Applications

Stem cells are found in naturally occurring 3D microenvironments in vivo, which are often referred to as the stem cell niche 1. Culturing stem cells inside of 3D biomaterial scaffolds provides a way to accurately mimic these microenvironments, providing an advantage over traditional 2D culture methods using polystyrene as well as a method for engineering replacement tissues 2. While 2D tissue culture polystrene has been used for the majority of cell culture experiments, 3D biomaterial scaffolds can more closely replicate the microenvironments found in vivo by enabling more accurate establishment of cell polarity in the environment and possessing biochemical and mechanical properties similar to soft tissue.3 A variety of naturally derived and synthetic biomaterial scaffolds have been investigated as 3D environments for supporting stem cell growth. While synthetic scaffolds can be synthesized to have a greater range of mechanical and chemical properties and often have greater reproducibility, natural biomaterials are often composed of proteins and polysaccharides found in the extracelluar matrix and as a result contain binding sites for cell adhesion and readily support cell culture. Fibrin scaffolds, produced by polymerizing the protein fibrinogen obtained from plasma, have been widely investigated for a variety of tissue engineering applications both in vitro and in vivo 4. Such scaffolds can be modified using a variety of methods to incorporate controlled release systems for delivering therapeutic factors 5. Previous work has shown that such scaffolds can be used to successfully culture embryonic stem cells and this scaffold-based culture system can be used to screen the effects of various growth factors on the differentiation of the stem cells seeded inside 6,7.
 This protocol details the process of polymerizing fibrin scaffolds from fibrinogen solutions using the enzymatic activity of thrombin. The process takes 2 days to complete, including an overnight dialysis step for the fibrinogen solution to remove citrates that inhibit polymerization. These detailed methods rely on fibrinogen concentrations determined to be optimal for embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cell culture. Other groups have further investigated fibrin scaffolds for a wide range of cell types and applications - demonstrating the versatility of this approach 8-12.

This work details the preparation of 3D fibrin scaffolds for culturing and differentiating plutipotent stem cells. Such scaffolds can be used to screen the effects of various biological compounds on stem cell behavior as well as modified to contain drug delivery systems.

Stem cells are found in naturally occurring 3D microenvironments in vivo, which are often referred to as the stem cell niche 1. Culturing stem cells ...

Cultivation of Human Neural Progenitor Cells in a 3-dimensional Self-assembling Peptide Hydrogel

The influence of 3-dimensional (3D) scaffolds on growth, proliferation and finally neuronal differentiation is of great interest in order to find new methods for cell-based and standardised therapies in neurological disorders or neurodegenerative diseases. 3D structures are expected to provide an environment much closer to the in vivo situation than 2D cultures. In the context of regenerative medicine, the combination of biomaterial scaffolds with neural stem and progenitor cells holds great promise as a therapeutic tool.1-5 Culture systems emulating a three dimensional environment have been shown to influence proliferation and differentiation in different types of stem and progenitor cells. Herein, the formation and functionalisation of the 3D-microenviroment is important to determine the survival and fate of the embedded cells.6-8 Here we used PuraMatrix9,10 (RADA16, PM), a peptide based hydrogel scaffold, which is well described and used to study the influence of a 3D-environment on different cell types.7,11-14 PuraMatrix can be customised easily and the synthetic fabrication of the nano-fibers provides a 3D-culture system of high reliability, which is in addition xeno-free.
Recently we have studied the influence of the PM-concentration on the formation of the scaffold.13 In this study the used concentrations of PM had a direct impact on the formation of the 3D-structure, which was demonstrated by atomic force microscopy. A subsequent analysis of the survival and differentiation of the hNPCs revealed an influence of the used concentrations of PM on the fate of the embedded cells. However, the analysis of survival or neuronal differentiation by means of immunofluorescence techniques posses some hurdles. To gain reliable data, one has to determine the total number of cells within a matrix to obtain the relative number of e.g. neuronal cells marked by &beta;III-tubulin. This prerequisites a technique to analyse the scaffolds in all 3-dimensions by a confocal microscope or a comparable technique like fluorescence microscopes able to take z-stacks of the specimen. Furthermore this kind of analysis is extremely time consuming. 
Here we demonstrate a method to release cells from the 3D-scaffolds for the later analysis e.g. by flow cytometry. In this protocol human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs) of the ReNcell VM cell line (Millipore USA) were cultured and differentiated in 3D-scaffolds consisting of PuraMatrix (PM) or PuraMatrix supplemented with laminin (PML). In our hands a PM-concentration of 0.25% was optimal for the cultivation of the cells13, however the concentration might be adapted to other cell types.12 The released cells can be used for e.g. immunocytochemical studies and subsequently analysed by flow cytometry. This speeds up the analysis and more over, the obtained data rest upon a wider base, improving the reliability of the data.

Here we describe the use of a self-assembling 3-dimensional scaffold to culture human neural progenitor cells. We present a protocol to release the cells from the scaffolds to be analysed subsequently e.g. by flow cytometry. This protocol might be adapted to other cell types to perform detailed mechanistically studies.

The  influence of 3-dimensional (3D) scaffolds on growth, proliferation and finally  neuronal differentiation is of great interest in order to find new ...

3D Hydrogel Scaffolds for Articular Chondrocyte Culture and Cartilage Generation

Human articular cartilage is highly susceptible to damage and has limited self-repair and regeneration potential. Cell-based strategies to engineer cartilage tissue offer a promising solution to repair articular cartilage. To select the optimal cell source for tissue repair, it is important to develop an appropriate culture platform to systematically examine the biological and biomechanical differences in the tissue-engineered cartilage by different cell sources. Here we applied a three-dimensional (3D) biomimetic hydrogel culture platform to systematically examine cartilage regeneration potential of juvenile, adult, and osteoarthritic (OA) chondrocytes. The 3D biomimetic hydrogel consisted of synthetic component poly(ethylene glycol) and bioactive component chondroitin sulfate, which provides a physiologically relevant microenvironment for in vitro culture of chondrocytes. In addition, the scaffold may be potentially used for cell delivery for cartilage repair in vivo. Cartilage tissue engineered in the scaffold can be evaluated using quantitative gene expression, immunofluorescence staining, biochemical assays, and mechanical testing. Utilizing these outcomes, we were able to characterize the differential regenerative potential of chondrocytes of varying age, both at the gene expression level and in the biochemical and biomechanical properties of the engineered cartilage tissue. The 3D culture model could be applied to investigate the molecular and functional differences among chondrocytes and progenitor cells from different stages of normal or aberrant development.

Cartilage repair represents an unmet medical challenge and cell-based approaches to engineer human articular cartilage are a promising solution. Here, we describe three-dimensional (3D) biomimetic hydrogels as an ideal tool for the expansion and maturation of human articular chondrocytes.

Human articular cartilage is highly susceptible to damage and has limited self-repair and regeneration potential. Cell-based strategies to engineer ...

Epithelial Cell Repopulation and Preparation of Rodent Extracellular Matrix Scaffolds for Renal Tissue Development

This protocol details the generation of acellular, yet biofunctional, renal extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffolds that are useful as small-scale model substrates for organ-scale tissue development. Sprague Dawley rat kidneys are cannulated by inserting a catheter into the renal artery and perfused with a series of low-concentration detergents (Triton X-100 and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)) over 26 hr to derive intact, whole-kidney scaffolds with intact perfusable vasculature, glomeruli, and renal tubules. Following decellularization, the renal scaffold is placed inside a custom-designed perfusion bioreactor vessel, and the catheterized renal artery is connected to a perfusion circuit consisting of: a peristaltic pump; tubing; and optional probes for pH, dissolved oxygen, and pressure. After sterilizing the scaffold with peracetic acid and ethanol, and balancing the pH (7.4), the kidney scaffold is prepared for seeding via perfusion of culture medium within a large-capacity incubator maintained at 37 &#176;C and 5% CO2. Forty million renal cortical tubular epithelial (RCTE) cells are injected through the renal artery, and rapidly perfused through the scaffold under high flow (25 ml/min) and pressure (~230 mmHg) for 15 min before reducing the flow to a physiological rate (4 ml/min). RCTE cells primarily populate the tubular ECM niche within the renal cortex, proliferate, and form tubular epithelial structures over seven days of perfusion culture. A 44 &#181;M resazurin solution in culture medium is perfused through the kidney for 1 hr during medium exchanges to provide a fluorometric, redox-based metabolic assessment of cell viability and proliferation during tubulogenesis. The kidney perfusion bioreactor permits non-invasive sampling of medium for biochemical assessment, and multiple inlet ports allow alternative retrograde seeding through the renal vein or ureter. These protocols can be used to recellularize kidney scaffolds with a variety of cell types, including vascular endothelial, tubular epithelial, and stromal fibroblasts, for rapid evaluation within this system.

This protocol describes decellularization of Sprague Dawley rat kidneys by antegrade perfusion of detergents through the vasculature, producing acellular renal extracellular matrices that serve as templates for repopulation with human renal epithelial cells. Recellularization and use of the resazurin perfusion assay to monitor growth is performed within specially-designed perfusion bioreactors.

This protocol details the generation of acellular, yet biofunctional, renal extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffolds that are useful as small-scale model ...

Synthesis of Biocompatible Liquid Crystal Elastomer Foams as Cell Scaffolds for 3D Spatial Cell Cultures

Here, we present a step-by-step preparation of a 3D, biodegradable, foam-like cell scaffold. These scaffolds were prepared by cross-linking star block co-polymers featuring cholesterol units as side-chain pendant groups, resulting in smectic-A (SmA) liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs). Foam-like scaffolds, prepared using metal templates, feature interconnected microchannels, making them suitable as 3D cell culture scaffolds. The combined properties of the regular structure of the metal foam and of the elastomer result in a 3D cell scaffold that promotes not only higher cell proliferation compared to conventional porous templated films, but also better management of mass transport (i.e., nutrients, gases, waste, etc.). The nature of the metal template allows for the easy manipulation of foam shapes (i.e., rolls or films) and for the preparation of scaffolds of different pore sizes for different cell studies while preserving the interconnected porous nature of the template. The etching process does not affect the chemistry of the elastomers, preserving their biocompatible and biodegradable nature. We show that these smectic LCEs, when grown for extensive time periods, enable the study of clinically relevant and complex tissue constructs while promoting the growth and proliferation of cells.

This study presents a methodology to prepare 3D, biodegradable, foam-like cell scaffolds based on biocompatible side-chain liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs). Confocal microscopy experiments show that foam-like LCEs allow for cell attachment, proliferation, and the spontaneous alignment of C2C12s myoblasts.

Here, we present a step-by-step preparation of a 3D, biodegradable, foam-like cell scaffold. These scaffolds were prepared by cross-linking star block ...

Hyaluronic-Acid Based Hydrogels for 3-Dimensional Culture of Patient-Derived Glioblastoma Cells

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common, yet most lethal, central nervous system cancer. In recent years, many studies have focused on how the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the unique brain environment, such as hyaluronic acid (HA), facilitates GBM progression and invasion. However, most in vitro culture models include GBM cells outside of the context of an ECM. Murine xenografts of GBM cells are used commonly as well. However, in vivo models make it difficult to isolate the contributions of individual features of the complex tumor microenvironment to tumor behavior. Here, we describe an HA hydrogel-based, three-dimensional (3D) culture platform that allows researchers to independently alter HA concentration and stiffness. High molecular weight HA and polyethylene glycol (PEG) comprise hydrogels, which are crosslinked via Michael-type addition in the presence of live cells. 3D hydrogel cultures of patient-derived GBM cells exhibit viability and proliferation rates as good as, or better than, when cultured as standard gliomaspheres. The hydrogel system also enables incorporation of ECM-mimetic peptides to isolate effects of specific cell-ECM interactions. Hydrogels are optically transparent so that live cells can be imaged in 3D culture. Finally, HA hydrogel cultures are compatible with standard techniques for molecular and cellular analyses, including PCR, Western blotting and cryosectioning followed by immunofluorescence staining.

Here, we present a protocol for three-dimensional culture of patient-derived glioblastoma cells within orthogonally tunable biomaterials designed to mimic the brain matrix. This approach provides an in vitro, experimental platform that maintains many characteristics of in vivo glioblastoma cells typically lost in culture.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common, yet most lethal, central nervous system cancer. In recent years, many studies have focused on how the extracellular ...