Development of this protocol was funded by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM, TR1-01246) and Parkinson Alliance.

The skin punch biopsy obtained using standard procedure3 (e.g. obtained with 4mm round Visipunch instrument) should be kept in complete DMEM 20% FBS media on ice. Once the sample has arrived in the laboratory, process the biopsy as soon as possible.
1. Preparation of the Skin Punch Biopsy
STEPS 1.1- 1.3 ARE TO BE PERFORMED INSIDE A BIOSAFETY CABINET
<ol>
 <li>Prepare in advance: Add 1 ml of 0.1% Gelatin to each well of a 6-well plate. Set the plate aside for 30-60 min. Aspirate the gelatin solution and add 800 &mu;l of complete DMEM/20% FBS media to each well. Ensure that the entire surface of the well is covered with media. </li>
 <li>Invert the lid of a sterile 10 cm tissue culture dish and add 1.5 ml of DMEM/ 20% FBS media to the middle of the lid and spread out the media drop with the tip of the serological pipette. </li>
 <li>Using a sterile forceps, place the skin biopsy piece in the media on the dish. </li>
</ol>
2. Dissection of the Skin Punch Biopsy
STEPS 9 2.1-2.2 ARE TO BE PERFORMED INSIDE A HORIZONTAL LAMINAR FLOW HOOD
<ol>
 <li>Place the bottom portion of 10 cm dish on inverted lid, and transfer the skin biopsy to the dissecting microscope in the laminar flow hood. </li>
 <li>Dissect a 4-mm round skin biopsy into 12-15 evenly sized pieces with sharp edges by cutting pieces in equal halves using one scalpel to hold the biopsy in place and the second scalpel to cut with a rolling motion in one direction. Pieces with ragged edges contribute to poor attachment/cell outgrowth. </li>
</ol>
3. Transfer of Dissected Skin Biopsy Pieces into Tissue Culture Plates 
STEPS 3.1-3.6 ARE TO BE PERFORMED INSIDE A BIOSAFETY CABINET
<ol>
 <li>Place the bottom portion of the 10 cm tissue culture dish on top of the inverted lid, and transfer dish back into to the biosafety cabinet.</li>
 <li>Using a pointed forceps, place 2-3 biopsy pieces into each well of the prepared 6-well plate containing 800 &mu;l and not on dry wells. Use tapping or sliding motion to get the pieces to attach to the bottom of the well. A scalpel is useful to remove any biopsy pieces from the forceps. </li>
 <li>Place the 6-well plate in the 37 &deg;C incubator. Monitor daily to ensure there is a film of media coating the bottom of the well for the first week; add ~200 &mu;l every 2 days to replace any evaporated media.</li>
 <li>After one week, increase amount of media to 2 ml of complete DMEM/20%FBS and change media every 2-3 days. </li>
 <li>Once fibroblasts are confluent in each well to the point where the fibroblasts are reaching the edges of the well, trypsinize and passage 6-well plate into 2X T75 flasks (passage 1). The tissue pieces can be transferred as well. They will not attach and be washed out during the next media change. </li>
 <li>Once fibroblasts are confluent, transfer them to 3X T175 flasks (passage 2), freeze in complete DMEM media plus 10% DMSO at 1x106 cells/ml per vial. </li>
</ol>
4. Characterization the Fibroblasts through Immunostaining
<ol>
 <li>Culture fibroblasts in 8 well chamber slide coated with gelatin.</li>
 <li>When cells are at 80% confluency, aspirate the medium from each well.</li>
 <li>Fix cells in 4% Paraformaldehyde for ten minutes at room temperature. </li>
 <li> Wash the wells 3 times with 1X PBS.</li>
 <li>Permeabilize the cells with 150 &mu;l of 0.3% Triton X-100 (in PBS) for 5 min at room temperature. </li>
 <li>Wash the wells 3 times with 1X PBS.</li>
 <li>Add 200 &mu;l blocking solution (PBS + 5% Normal Goat Serum (Vector, S-1000)) for 1 hr at room temperature.</li>
 <li>Prepare a 1:250 dilution of Anti-SERPHIN-1 (Anti-rabbit, mAB, Sigma, S5950-200 &mu;l) in blocking solution.</li>
 <li>Aspirate the blocking solution, and add 150 &mu;l of the 1:250 dilution of AntiSERPINH-1. Incubate at 1-2 hr at room temperature, or at 4 &deg;C overnight. </li>
 <li>Wash the wells 3 times with 1X PBS.</li>
 <li>Prepare a 1:200 goat-anti-rabbit monoclonal antibody (Alexa Fluor Goat anti-rabbit IgG(H+L), Invitrogen, A11008) in blocking solution. </li>
 <li>Add 150 &mu;l of 1:200 goat-anti-rabbit monoclonal antibody to each well. Incubate for 1 hr, in dark, at room temperature. </li>
 <li>Wash wells once with 1xPBS. </li>
 <li>Aspirate the PBS, and carefully lift the chambers off to reveal just the slide.</li>
 <li>Mount the slide with a 2-3 drops of mounting medium containing DAPI (Vector, H-1200).</li>
 <li>Analyze the slide under a fluorescent microscope. </li>
</ol>

<ol>
	<li>Nguyen, H. N., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=LRRK2+mutant+iPSC-derived+DA+neurons+demonstrate+increased+susceptibility+to+oxidative+stress.">LRRK2 mutant iPSC-derived DA neurons demonstrate increased susceptibility to oxidative stress.</a> Cell Stem Cell. 8, 267-280 (2011).</li><li>Mak, S. K., Tewari, D., Tetrud, J. W., Langston, J. W., Schule, B. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Mitochondrial+dysfunction+in+skin+fibroblasts+from+a+Parkinson's+disease+patient+with+an+alpha-synuclein+triplication.">Mitochondrial dysfunction in skin fibroblasts from a Parkinson's disease patient with an alpha-synuclein triplication.</a> Journal of Parkinson's Disease. 1, 175-183 (2011).</li><li>Punch Zuber, T. J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=biopsy+of+the+skin.">biopsy of the skin.</a> Am. Fam. Physician. 65, 1155-1164 (2002).</li><li>Takashima, A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Establishment+of+fibroblast+cultures.">Establishment of fibroblast cultures.</a> Curr. Protoc. Cell Biol. Chapter 2, Unit 2, 1 (2001).</li><li>Kuroda, K., Tajima, S. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=HSP47+is+a+useful+marker+for+skin+fibroblasts+in+formalin-fixed,+paraffin+embedded+tissue+specimens.">HSP47 is a useful marker for skin fibroblasts in formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded tissue specimens.</a> J. Cutan. Pathol. , 241-246 (2004).</li></ol>

The authors have nothing to disclose.

With this protocol, relatively pure cultures of skin fibroblasts can be obtained. The fibroblasts have characteristic morphological features of elongated, spindle-like cell bodies, round to oval cell nuclei, and the fibroblasts grow aligned and in bundles when confluent. The media supports the growth of fibroblasts whereas other cell populations e.g. keratinocytes need additional supplements and growth factors, or are mitotically less active, this allows for relatively pure fibroblast cultures. 
The fibroblasts are subsequently passaged with trypsin at a 1:3 to 1:5 ratio. The culture is expanded to the desired quantity of fibroblasts (15-20 Million) within 4-8 weeks. 
Using this technique, our laboratory has derived over 70 fibroblast lines successfully. We have tested every line for mycoplasma contamination and add antibiotics to the growth media to avoid other bacterial contamination. For the initial explant culture we found that 20% FBS in the media supports the growth, however, in later passages 10% FBS is sufficient. Occasionally, we observe a direct outgrowth of fibroblasts from the skin pieces presumably due to the cutting angle of the skin and the removal of the epidermis which contains keratinocytes.
A similar technique using a coverslip to hold down the skin pieces was less effective in our hands4. Due to the movement of the coverslip within culture dish -even when handled with great care- the skin pieces did not attach properly.

<table border="1">
<tbody>
 <tr>
 <td>Name of Equipment</td>
 <td>Company</td>
 <td>Catalogue Number</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Dissecting microscope</td>
 <td>Leica</td>
 <td>S6E</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>10 cm Tissue Culture Petri dish</td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>25382-166</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>6-well Tissue Culture plate </td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>73520-906</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Stainless steel disposable sterile scalpels (2), blade No#15, Miltex</td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>21909-660</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Sterile pointed-tip forceps</td>
 <td>&nbsp;</td>
 <td>&nbsp;</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>50 mL Conical tubes</td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>21008-940</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>2 mL Serological Pipettes</td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>89130-894</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>5 mL Serological Pipettes</td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>89130-896</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>10 mL Serological Pipettes</td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>89130-898</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Pasteur Pipettes</td>
 <td>VWR</td>
 <td>14672-380</td>
 </tr>
 </tbody>
</table>
Table A. Table of specific reagents and equipments.
 <table border="1">
 <tbody>
 <tr>
 <td>Name of Reagent</td>
 <td>Company </td>
 <td>Catalogue Number</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>1X DMEM: High Glucose</td>
 <td>Invitrogen/Gibco</td>
 <td>11960-069</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>20% Fetal Bovine Serum</td>
 <td>Invitrogen/Gibco</td>
 <td>26140-079</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>1X L-Glutamine</td>
 <td>Invitrogen/Gibco</td>
 <td>25030-164</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>1X MEM Non-essential Amino Acids </td>
 <td>Invitrogen/Gibco</td>
 <td>11140-076</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>1X Penicillin/Streptomycin</td>
 <td>Invitrogen/Gibco</td>
 <td>15140-163</td>
 </tr>
 </tbody>
 </table>
Table B. Reagents.

skin punch biopsy explant culture for derivation of primary human fibroblasts

Tissues and cell lines derived from an individual with disease are ideal sources to study disease-related cellular phenotypes. Patient-derived fibroblasts in this protocol have been successfully used in the derivation of induced pluripotent stem cells to model disease1. Early passages of these fibroblasts can also be used for cell-based functional assays to study specific disease pathways, mechanisms2 and subsequent drug screening approaches. The advantage of the presented protocol over enzymatic procedures are 1) the reproducibility of the technique from small amounts of tissue derived from older patients, e.g. patients affected with Parkinson's disease, 2) the technically simple approach over more challenging methodologies using enzymatic treatments, and 3) the time consideration: this protocol takes 15-20 min and can be performed immediately after biopsy arrival. Enzymatic treatments can take up to 4 hr and have the problems of overdigestion, reduction of cell viability and subsequent attachment of cells when not handled properly. This protocol describes the dissection and preparation of a 4-mm human skin biopsy for derivation of a fibroblast culture and has a very high success rate which is important when dealing with patient-derived tissue samples. In this culture, keratinocytes migrate out of the biopsy tissue within the first week after preparation. Fibroblasts appear 7-10 days after the first outgrowth of keratinocytes. DMEM high glucose media supplemented with 20% FBS favors the growth of fibroblasts over keratinocytes and fibroblasts will overgrow the keratinocytes. After 2 passages keratinocytes have been diluted out resulting in relatively homogenous fibroblast cultures which expresses the fibroblast marker SERPINH1 (HSP-47). Using this approach, 15-20 million fibroblasts can be derived in 4-8 weeks for cell banking. The skin dissection takes about 15-20 min, cells are then monitored once a day under the microscope, and media is changed every 2-3 days after attachment and outgrowth of cells.

Keratinocytes growing out of the biopsy pieces as soon as 48 hr after dissection. First fibroblasts outgrowth can be observed about one week after processing. Once the wells have reached confluency, fibroblasts are passaged for two more passages to reach three 150 cm flasks (T150) and cells are cryopreserved. We generate with this method 15-20 million cells. The fibroblasts are positive for anti-SERPINH1 (also known as HSP-47) (Figure 1), which is a collagen-specific molecular chaperone localized in the endoplasmic reticulum. HSP47 plays an essential role in collagen biosynthesis in skin fibroblasts (Kuroda, et al., 2004)5.
TIME LINE
<table border="1">
 <tbody>
 <tr>
 <td fo:width="1in">Day</td>
 <td fo:width="3in">Expectation</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Day 3- Day 7 </td>
 <td>Attachment and outgrowth of keratinocytes</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Day 7- Day 14</td>
 <td>Outgrowth of fibroblasts</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Day 25-Day 35</td>
 <td>Fibroblasts should cover the 6-well plate and should be for passaged into 75cm flasks, passage a second time into 150cm flasks</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Day 30-Day 50</td>
 <td>Freeze down as 1Mio cells/vial about 15-20 Mio cells in complete DMEM media plus 10% DMSO</td>
 </tr>
 </tbody>
</table>
<img src="/files/ftp_upload/3779/3779fig1.jpg" target="_blank" fo:src="/files/ftp_upload/3779/3779fig1highres.jpg" fo:width="4in" /> 
Figure 1. Anti-SERPHIN1 immunohistochemistry of patient-derived fibroblast culture with DAPI counterstaining.

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Skin Punch Biopsy Explant Culture for Derivation of Primary Human Fibroblasts at JoVE.com

Skin Punch Biopsy Explant Culture for Derivation of Primary Human Fibroblasts

The fibroblast explant culture protocol from human skin punch biopsies is a technically robust and simple way to derive skin cells within 4-8 weeks for banking of about 15-20 million cells at a low passage number.

Tissues and cell lines derived from an individual with disease are ideal sources to study disease-related cellular phenotypes. Patient-derived fibroblasts ...

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Research

JoVE Journal

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41.1K Views.  The Parkinson's Institute. The fibroblast explant culture protocol from human skin punch biopsies is a technically robust and simple way to derive skin cells within 4-8 weeks for banking of about 15-20 million cells at a low passage number.

Video: Skin Punch Biopsy Explant Culture for Derivation of Primary Human Fibroblasts

Experimental Generation of Carcinoma-Associated Fibroblasts (CAFs) from Human Mammary Fibroblasts

Carcinomas are complex tissues comprised of neoplastic cells and a non-cancerous compartment referred to as the 'stroma'. The stroma consists of extracellular matrix (ECM) and a variety of mesenchymal cells, including fibroblasts, myofibroblasts, endothelial cells, pericytes and leukocytes 1-3.
The tumour-associated stroma is responsive to substantial paracrine signals released by neighbouring carcinoma cells. During the disease process, the stroma often becomes populated by carcinoma-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) including large numbers of myofibroblasts. These cells have previously been extracted from many different types of human carcinomas for their in vitro culture. A subpopulation of CAFs is distinguishable through their up-regulation of &alpha;-smooth muscle actin (&alpha;-SMA) expression4,5. These cells are a hallmark of 'activated fibroblasts' that share similar properties with myofibroblasts commonly observed in injured and fibrotic tissues 6. The presence of this myofibroblastic CAF subset is highly related to high-grade malignancies and associated with poor prognoses in patients.
Many laboratories, including our own, have shown that CAFs, when injected with carcinoma cells into immunodeficient mice, are capable of substantially promoting tumourigenesis 7-10. CAFs prepared from carcinoma patients, however, frequently undergo senescence during propagation in culture limiting the extensiveness of their use throughout ongoing experimentation. To overcome this difficulty, we developed a novel technique to experimentally generate immortalised human mammary CAF cell lines (exp-CAFs) from human mammary fibroblasts, using a coimplantation breast tumour xenograft model.
In order to generate exp-CAFs, parental human mammary fibroblasts, obtained from the reduction mammoplasty tissue, were first immortalised with hTERT, the catalytic subunit of the telomerase holoenzyme, and engineered to express GFP and a puromycin resistance gene. These cells were coimplanted with MCF-7 human breast carcinoma cells expressing an activated ras oncogene (MCF-7-ras cells) into a mouse xenograft. After a period of incubation in vivo, the initially injected human mammary fibroblasts were extracted from the tumour xenografts on the basis of their puromycin resistance 11.
We observed that the resident human mammary fibroblasts have differentiated, adopting a myofibroblastic phenotype and acquired tumour-promoting properties during the course of tumour progression. Importantly, these cells, defined as exp-CAFs, closely mimic the tumour-promoting myofibroblastic phenotype of CAFs isolated from breast carcinomas dissected from patients. Our tumour xenograft-derived exp-CAFs therefore provide an effective model to study the biology of CAFs in human breast carcinomas. The described protocol may also be extended for generating and characterising various CAF populations derived from other types of human carcinomas.

Experimental Generation of Carcinoma-Associated Fibroblasts CAFs from Human Mammary Fibroblasts

Carcinoma-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) rich in myofibroblasts present within the tumour stroma, play a major role in driving tumour progression. We developed a coimplantation tumour xengraft model for experimentally generating CAFs from human mammary fibroblasts. The protocol describes how to establish CAF myofibroblasts that acquire an ability to promote tumourigenesis.

Carcinomas are complex tissues comprised of neoplastic cells and a non-cancerous compartment referred to as the 'stroma'. The stroma consists of ...

The Use of Primary Human Fibroblasts for Monitoring Mitochondrial Phenotypes in the Field of Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common movement disorder and affects 1% of people over the age of 60 1. Because ageing is the most important risk factor, cases of PD will increase during the next decades 2. Next to pathological protein folding and impaired protein degradation pathways, alterations of mitochondrial function and morphology were pointed out as further hallmark of neurodegeneration in PD 3-11.
After years of research in murine and human cancer cells as in vitro models to dissect molecular pathways of Parkinsonism, the use of human fibroblasts from patients and appropriate controls as ex vivo models has become a valuable research tool, if potential caveats are considered. Other than immortalized, rather artificial cell models, primary fibroblasts from patients carrying disease-associated mutations apparently reflect important pathological features of the human disease.
Here we delineate the procedure of taking skin biopsies, culturing human fibroblasts and using detailed protocols for essential microscopic techniques to define mitochondrial phenotypes. These were used to investigate different features associated with PD that are relevant to mitochondrial function and dynamics. Ex vivo, mitochondria can be analyzed in terms of their function, morphology, colocalization with lysosomes (the organelles degrading dysfunctional mitochondria) and degradation via the lysosomal pathway. These phenotypes are highly relevant for the identification of early signs of PD and may precede clinical motor symptoms in human disease-gene carriers. Hence, the assays presented here can be utilized as valuable tools to identify pathological features of neurodegeneration and help to define new therapeutic strategies in PD.

Fibroblasts from patients carrying mutations in Parkinson's disease-causing genes represent an easily accessible ex vivo model to study disease-associated phenotypes. Live cell imaging gives the opportunity to study morphological and functional parameters in living cells. Here we describe the preparation of human fibroblasts and subsequent monitoring of mitochondrial phenotypes.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most  common movement disorder and affects 1% of people over the age of 60 1. Because ageing is  the most important ...

Processing of Human Reduction Mammoplasty and Mastectomy Tissues for Cell Culture

Experimental examination of normal human mammary epithelial cell (HMEC) behavior, and how normal cells acquire abnormal properties, can be facilitated by in vitro culture systems that more accurately model in vivo biology. The use of human derived material for studying cellular differentiation, aging, senescence, and immortalization is particularly advantageous given the many significant molecular differences in these properties between human and commonly utilized rodent cells1-2. Mammary cells present a convenient model system because large quantities of normal and abnormal tissues are available due to the frequency of reduction mammoplasty and mastectomy surgeries.
The mammary gland consists of a complex admixture of many distinct cell types, e.g., epithelial, adipose, mesenchymal, endothelial. The epithelial cells are responsible for the differentiated mammary function of lactation, and are also the origin of the vast majority of human breast cancers. We have developed methods to process mammary gland surgical discard tissues into pure epithelial components as well as mesenchymal cells3. The processed material can be stored frozen indefinitely, or initiated into primary culture. Surgical discard material is transported to the laboratory and manually dissected to enrich for epithelial containing tissue. Subsequent digestion of the dissected tissue using collagenase and hyaluronidase strips stromal material from the epithelia at the basement membrane. The resulting small pieces of the epithelial tree (organoids) can be separated from the digested stroma by sequential filtration on membranes of fixed pore size. Depending upon pore size, fractions can be obtained consisting of larger ductal/alveolar pieces, smaller alveolar clusters, or stromal cells. We have observed superior growth when cultures are initiated as organoids rather than as dissociated single cells. Placement of organoids in culture using low-stress inducing media supports long-term growth of normal HMEC with markers of multiple lineage types (myoepithelial, luminal, progenitor)4-5. Sufficient numbers of cells can be obtained from one individual's tissue to allow extensive experimental examination using standardized cell batches, as well as interrogation using high throughput modalities.
Cultured HMEC have been employed in a wide variety of studies examining the normal processes governing growth, differentiation, aging, and senescence, and how these normal processes are altered during immortal and malignant transformation4-15,16. The effects of growth in the presence of extracellular matrix material, other cell types, and/or 3D culture can be compared with growth on plastic5,15. Cultured HMEC, starting with normal cells, provide an experimentally tractable system to examine factors that may propel or prevent human aging and carcinogenesis.

A method to process human mammary surgical discard material is described. Processed tissue, in the form of organoids, can be stored frozen indefinitely or placed in culture for long-term growth. This method enables experimental examination of normal human epithelial cell biology, and the effects of exogenous perturbations.

Experimental  examination of normal human mammary epithelial cell (HMEC) behavior, and how  normal cells acquire abnormal properties, can be facilitated ...

In vitro Organoid Culture of Primary Mouse Colon Tumors

Several human and murine colon cancer cell lines have been established, physiologic integrity of colon tumors such as multiple cell layers, basal-apical polarity, ability to differentiate, and anoikis are not maintained in colon cancer derived cell lines. The present study demonstrates a method for culturing primary mouse colon tumor organoids adapted from Sato T et al. 1, which retains important physiologic features of colon tumors. This method consists of mouse colon tumor tissue collection, adjacent normal colon epithelium dissociation, colon tumor cells digestion into single cells, embedding colon tumor cells into matrigel, and selective culture based on the principle that tumor cells maintain growth on limiting nutrient conditions compared to normal epithelial cells.
The primary tumor organoids if isolated from genetically modified mice provide a very useful system to assess tumor autonomous function of specific genes. Moreover, the tumor organoids are amenable to genetic manipulation by virus meditated gene delivery; therefore signaling pathways involved in the colon tumorigenesis could also be extensively investigated by overexpression or knockdown. Primary tumor organoids culture provides a physiologic relevant and feasible means to study the mechanisms and therapeutic modalities for colon tumorigenesis.

In vitro Organoid Culture of Primary Mouse Colon Tumors

A simple method to establish primary murine colon tumor organoid is described. This method utilizes the feature that colon tumor cells survive and grow into organoids in media containing limited growth factors, whereas normal colon epithelial do not.

Several  human and murine colon cancer cell lines have been established, physiologic  integrity of colon tumors such as multiple cell layers, basal-apical ...

A Three-dimensional Tissue Culture Model to Study Primary Human Bone Marrow and its Malignancies

Tissue culture has been an invaluable tool to study many aspects of cell function, from normal development to disease. Conventional cell culture methods rely on the ability of cells either to attach to a solid substratum of a tissue culture dish or to grow in suspension in liquid medium. Multiple immortal cell lines have been created and grown using such approaches, however, these methods frequently fail when primary cells need to be grown ex vivo. Such failure has been attributed to the absence of the appropriate extracellular matrix components of the tissue microenvironment from the standard systems where tissue culture plastic is used as a surface for cell growth. Extracellular matrix is an integral component of the tissue microenvironment and its presence is crucial for the maintenance of physiological functions such as cell polarization, survival, and proliferation. Here we present a 3-dimensional tissue culture method where primary bone marrow cells are grown in extracellular matrix formulated to recapitulate the microenvironment of the human bone (rBM system). Embedded in the extracellular matrix, cells are supplied with nutrients through the medium supplemented with human plasma, thus providing a comprehensive system where cell survival and proliferation can be sustained for up to 30 days while maintaining the cellular composition of the primary tissue. Using the rBM system we have successfully grown primary bone marrow cells from normal donors and patients with amyloidosis, and various hematological malignancies. The rBM system allows for direct, in-matrix real time visualization of the cell behavior and evaluation of preclinical efficacy of novel therapeutics. Moreover, cells can be isolated from the rBM and subsequently used for in vivo transplantation, cell sorting, flow cytometry, and nucleic acid and protein analysis. Taken together, the rBM method provides a reliable system for the growth of primary bone marrow cells under physiological conditions.

In standard culture methods cells are taken out of their physiological environment and grown on the plastic surface of a dish. To study the behavior of primary human bone marrow cells we created a 3-D culture system where cells are grown under conditions recapitulating the native microenvironment of the tissue.

Tissue culture has been an invaluable tool to study many aspects of cell function, from normal development to disease. Conventional cell culture methods ...

Primary Culture of Human Vestibular Schwannomas

Vestibular schwannomas (VSs) represent Schwann cell (SC) tumors of the vestibular nerve, compromising 10% of all intracranial neoplasms. VSs occur in either sporadic or familial (neurofibromatosis type 2, NF2) forms, both associated with inactivating defects in the NF2 tumor suppressor gene. Treatment for VSs is generally surgical resection or radiosurgery, however the morbidity of such procedures has driven investigations into less invasive treatments. Historically, lack of access to fresh tissue specimens and the fact that schwannoma cells are not immortalized have significantly hampered the use of primary cultures for investigation of schwannoma tumorigenesis. To overcome the limited supply of primary cultures, the immortalized HEI193 VS cell line was generated by transduction with HPV E6 and E7 oncogenes. This oncogenic transduction introduced significant molecular and phenotypic alterations to the cells, which limit their use as a model for human schwannoma tumors. We therefore illustrate a simplified, reproducible protocol for culture of primary human VS cells. This easily mastered technique allows for molecular and cellular investigations that more accurately recapitulate the complexity of VS disease.

Vestibular Schwannomas (VSs) are non-malignant tumors of Schwann cell (SC) origin, associated with mutations in the NF2 tumor suppressor gene. We report a reproducible, efficient protocol for primary human VS cell culture that allows for molecular and cellular experimental manipulation and analysis and recapitulates the heterogeneous nature of human disease.

Vestibular schwannomas (VSs) represent Schwann cell (SC) tumors of the vestibular nerve, compromising 10% of all intracranial neoplasms. VSs occur in ...

Human Skeletal Muscle Biopsy Procedures Using the Modified Bergstr&#246;m Technique

The percutaneous biopsy technique enables researchers and clinicians to collect skeletal muscle tissue samples. The technique is safe and highly effective. This video describes the percutaneous biopsy technique using a modified Bergstr&#246;m needle to obtain skeletal muscle tissue samples from the vastus lateralis of human subjects. The Bergstr&#246;m needle consists of an outer cannula with a small opening (&#8216;window&#8217;) at the side of the tip and an inner trocar with a cutting blade at the distal end. Under local anesthesia and aseptic conditions, the needle is advanced into the skeletal muscle through an incision in the skin, subcutaneous tissue, and fascia. Next, suction is applied to the inner trocar, the outer trocar is pulled back, skeletal muscle tissue is drawn into the window of the outer cannula by the suction, and the inner trocar is rapidly closed, thus cutting or clipping the skeletal muscle tissue sample. The needle is rotated 90&#176;&#160;and another cut is made. This process may be repeated three more times. This multiple cutting technique typically produces a sample of 100-200 mg or more in healthy subjects and can be done immediately before, during, and after a bout of exercise or other intervention. Following post-biopsy dressing of the incision site, subjects typically resume their activities of daily living right away and can fully participate in vigorous physical activity within 48-72 hr. Subjects should avoid heavy resistance exercise for 48 hr to reduce the risk of herniation of the muscle through the incision in the fascia.

The purpose of this video is to present the modified Bergstr&#246;m skeletal muscle biopsy technique on human subjects.

The percutaneous biopsy technique enables researchers and clinicians to collect skeletal muscle tissue samples. The technique is safe and highly ...

Establishment of Human Epithelial Enteroids and Colonoids from Whole Tissue and Biopsy

The epithelium of the gastrointestinal tract is constantly renewed as it turns over. This process is triggered by the proliferation of intestinal stem cells (ISCs) and progeny that progressively migrate and differentiate toward the tip of the villi. These processes, essential for gastrointestinal homeostasis, have been extensively studied using multiple approaches. Ex vivo technologies, especially primary cell cultures have proven to be promising for understanding intestinal epithelial functions. A long-term primary culture system for mouse intestinal crypts has been established to generate 3-dimensional epithelial organoids. These epithelial structures contain crypt- and villus-like domains reminiscent of normal gut epithelium. Commonly, termed &#8220;enteroids&#8221; when derived from small intestine and &#8220;colonoids&#8221; when derived from colon, they are different from organoids that also contain mesenchyme tissue. Additionally, these enteroids/colonoids continuously produce all cell types found normally within the intestinal epithelium. This in vitro organ-like culture system is rapidly becoming the new gold standard for investigation of intestinal stem cell biology and epithelial cell physiology. This technology has been recently transferred to the study of human gut. The establishment of human derived epithelial enteroids and colonoids from small intestine and colon has been possible through the utilization of specific culture media that allow their growth and maintenance over time. Here, we describe a method to establish a small intestinal and colon crypt-derived system from human whole tissue or biopsies. We emphasize the culture modalities that are essential for the successful growth and maintenance of human enteroids and colonoids.

We describe a method to establish human enteroids from small intestinal crypts and colonoids from colon crypts collected from both surgical tissue and biopsies. In this methodological article, we present the culture modalities that are essential for the successful growth and maintenance of human enteroids and colonoids.

The epithelium of the gastrointestinal tract is constantly renewed as it turns over. This process is triggered by the proliferation of intestinal stem ...

Human Vastus Lateralis Skeletal Muscle Biopsy Using the Weil-Blakesley Conchotome

Percutaneous muscle biopsy using the Weil-Blakesley conchotome is well established in both clinical and research practice. It is a safe, effective and well tolerated technique. The Weil-Blakesley conchotome has a sharp biting tip with a 4 - 6 mm wide hollow. It is inserted through a 5 - 10 mm skin incision and can be maneuvered for controlled tissue penetration. The tip is opened and closed within the tissue and then rotated through 90 -180&#176; to cut the muscle. The amount of muscle obtained following repeated sampling can vary from 20 mg to 290 mg which can be processed for both histology and molecular studies. The wound needs to be kept dry and vigorous physical activity kept to a minimum for approximately 72 hr although normal levels of activity can restart immediately following the procedure. This procedure is safe and effective when close attention is paid to the selection of subjects, full asepsis and post procedure care. &#160;Both right and left vastus lateralis are suitable for biopsy dependent on participant preference.

Human Vastus Lateralis Skeletal Muscle Biopsy Using the Weil-Blakesley Conchotome

This video demonstrates the technique of percutaneous muscle biopsy of the human vastus lateralis using the Weil-Blakesley conchotome.

Percutaneous muscle biopsy using the Weil-Blakesley conchotome is well established in both clinical and research practice. It is a safe, effective and ...

Tissue Characterization after a New Disaggregation Method for Skin Micro-Grafts Generation

Several new methods have been developed in the field of biotechnology to obtain autologous cellular suspensions during surgery, in order to provide one step treatments for acute and chronic skin lesions. Moreover, the management of chronic but also acute wounds resulting from trauma, diabetes, infections and other causes, remains challenging. In this study we describe a new method to create autologous micro-grafts from cutaneous tissue of a single patient and their clinical application. Moreover, in vitro biological characterization of cutaneous tissue derived from skin, de-epidermized dermis (Ded) and dermis of multi-organ and/or multi-tissue donors was also performed. All tissues were disaggregated by this new protocol, allowing us to obtain viable micro-grafts. In particular, we reported that this innovative protocol is able to create bio-complexes composed by autologous micro-grafts and collagen sponges ready to be applied on skin lesions. The clinical application of autologous bio-complexes on a leg lesion was also reported, showing an improvement of both re-epitalization process and softness of the lesion. Additionally, our in vitro model showed that cell viability after mechanical disaggregation with this system is maintained over time for up to seven (7) days of culture. We also observed, by flow cytometry analysis, that the pool of cells obtained from disaggregation is composed of several cell types, including mesenchymal stem cells, that exert a key role in the processes of tissue regeneration and repair, for their high regenerative potential. Finally, we demonstrated in vitro that this procedure maintains the sterility of micro-grafts when cultured in Agar dishes. In summary, we conclude that this new regenerative approach can be a promising tool for clinicians to obtain in one step viable, sterile and ready to use micro-grafts that can be applied alone or in combination with most common biological scaffolds.

The protocol describes a new method to disaggregate human tissues and to create autologous micro-grafts that, combined with collagen sponges, give rise to human bio-complexes ready to use in the treatment of skin lesions. Further, this system preserves cell viability of micro-grafts at different times after mechanical disaggregation.

Several new methods have been developed in the field of biotechnology to obtain autologous cellular suspensions during surgery, in order to provide one ...

Skin Punch Biopsy Explant Culture for Derivation of Primary Human Fibroblasts

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Human Vastus Lateralis Skeletal Muscle Biopsy Using the Weil-Blakesley Conchotome

Tissue Characterization after a New Disaggregation Method for Skin Micro-Grafts Generation