scholarly journals A Drug Screening Pipeline Using 2D and 3D Patient-Derived In Vitro Models for Pre-Clinical Analysis of Therapy Response in Glioblastoma

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (9) ◽  
pp. 4322
Author(s):  
Sakthi Lenin ◽  
Elise Ponthier ◽  
Kaitlin G. Scheer ◽  
Erica C. F. Yeo ◽  
Melinda N. Tea ◽  
...  

Glioblastoma is one of the most common and lethal types of primary brain tumor. Despite aggressive treatment with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, tumor recurrence within 6–9 months is common. To overcome this, more effective therapies targeting cancer cell stemness, invasion, metabolism, cell death resistance and the interactions of tumor cells with their surrounding microenvironment are required. In this study, we performed a systematic review of the molecular mechanisms that drive glioblastoma progression, which led to the identification of 65 drugs/inhibitors that we screened for their efficacy to kill patient-derived glioma stem cells in two dimensional (2D) cultures and patient-derived three dimensional (3D) glioblastoma explant organoids (GBOs). From the screening, we found a group of drugs that presented different selectivity on different patient-derived in vitro models. Moreover, we found that Costunolide, a TERT inhibitor, was effective in reducing the cell viability in vitro of both primary tumor models as well as tumor models pre-treated with chemotherapy and radiotherapy. These results present a novel workflow for screening a relatively large groups of drugs, whose results could lead to the identification of more personalized and effective treatment for recurrent glioblastoma.

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Minjin Jeong ◽  
Karen E. Ocwieja ◽  
Dongjun Han ◽  
P. Ashley Wackym ◽  
Yichen Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background COVID-19 is a pandemic respiratory and vascular disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus. There is a growing number of sensory deficits associated with COVID-19 and molecular mechanisms underlying these deficits are incompletely understood. Methods We report a series of ten COVID-19 patients with audiovestibular symptoms such as hearing loss, vestibular dysfunction and tinnitus. To investigate the causal relationship between SARS-CoV-2 and audiovestibular dysfunction, we examine human inner ear tissue, human inner ear in vitro cellular models, and mouse inner ear tissue. Results We demonstrate that adult human inner ear tissue co-expresses the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor for SARS-CoV-2 virus, and the transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) and FURIN cofactors required for virus entry. Furthermore, hair cells and Schwann cells in explanted human vestibular tissue can be infected by SARS-CoV-2, as demonstrated by confocal microscopy. We establish three human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived in vitro models of the inner ear for infection: two-dimensional otic prosensory cells (OPCs) and Schwann cell precursors (SCPs), and three-dimensional inner ear organoids. Both OPCs and SCPs express ACE2, TMPRSS2, and FURIN, with lower ACE2 and FURIN expression in SCPs. OPCs are permissive to SARS-CoV-2 infection; lower infection rates exist in isogenic SCPs. The inner ear organoids show that hair cells express ACE2 and are targets for SARS-CoV-2. Conclusions Our results provide mechanistic explanations of audiovestibular dysfunction in COVID-19 patients and introduce hiPSC-derived systems for studying infectious human otologic disease.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel M McLaughlin ◽  
Amanda Laguna ◽  
Ilayda Top ◽  
Christien Hernadez ◽  
Liane L Livi ◽  
...  

Stroke is a devastating neurological disorder and a leading cause of death and long-term disability. Despite many decades of research, there are still very few therapeutic options for patients suffering from stroke or its consequences. This is partially due to the limitations of current research models, including traditional in vitro models which lack the three-dimensional (3D) architecture and cellular make-up of the in vivo brain. 3D spheroids derived from primary postnatal rat cortex provide an in vivo-relevant model containing a similar cellular composition to the native cortex and a cell-synthesized extracellular matrix. These spheroids are cost-effective, highly reproducible, and can be produced in a high-throughput manner, making this model an ideal candidate for screening potential therapeutics. To study the cellular and molecular mechanisms of stroke in this model, spheroids were deprived of glucose, oxygen, or both oxygen and glucose for 24 hours. Both oxygen and oxygen-glucose deprived spheroids demonstrated many of the hallmarks of stroke, including a decrease in metabolism, an increase in neural dysfunction, and an increase in reactive astrocytes. Pretreatment of spheroids with the antioxidant agent N-acetylcysteine (NAC) mitigated the decrease in ATP seen after 24 hours of oxygen-glucose deprivation. Together, these results show the utility of our 3D cortical spheroid model for studying ischemic injury and its potential for screening stroke therapeutics.


Author(s):  
Yasmine el Azhar ◽  
Katharina F. Sonnen

Despite decades of research, the complex processes of embryonic development are not fully understood. The study of mammalian development poses particular challenges such as low numbers of embryos, difficulties in culturing embryos in vitro, and the time to generate mutant lines. With new approaches we can now address questions that had to remain unanswered in the past. One big contribution to studying the molecular mechanisms of development are two- and three-dimensional in vitro model systems derived from pluripotent stem cells. These models, such as blastoids, gastruloids, and organoids, enable high-throughput screens and straightforward gene editing for functional testing without the need to generate mutant model organisms. Furthermore, their use reduces the number of animals needed for research and allows the study of human development. Here, we outline and discuss recent advances in such in vitro model systems to investigate pre-implantation and post-implantation development.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (29) ◽  
pp. 4778-4788 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria Heredia-Soto ◽  
Andrés Redondo ◽  
José Juan Pozo Kreilinger ◽  
Virginia Martínez-Marín ◽  
Alberto Berjón ◽  
...  

Sarcomas are tumours of mesenchymal origin, which can arise in bone or soft tissues. They are rare but frequently quite aggressive and with a poor outcome. New approaches are needed to characterise these tumours and their resistance mechanisms to current therapies, responsible for tumour recurrence and treatment failure. This review is focused on the potential of three-dimensional (3D) in vitro models, including multicellular tumour spheroids (MCTS) and organoids, and the latest data about their utility for the study on important properties for tumour development. The use of spheroids as a particularly valuable alternative for compound high throughput screening (HTS) in different areas of cancer biology is also discussed, which enables the identification of new therapeutic opportunities in commonly resistant tumours.


2021 ◽  
Vol 99 (4) ◽  
pp. 531-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cindrilla Chumduri ◽  
Margherita Y. Turco

AbstractHealthy functioning of the female reproductive tract (FRT) depends on balanced and dynamic regulation by hormones during the menstrual cycle, pregnancy and childbirth. The mucosal epithelial lining of different regions of the FRT—ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, cervix and vagina—facilitates the selective transport of gametes and successful transfer of the zygote to the uterus where it implants and pregnancy takes place. It also prevents pathogen entry. Recent developments in three-dimensional (3D) organoid systems from the FRT now provide crucial experimental models that recapitulate the cellular heterogeneity and physiological, anatomical and functional properties of the organ in vitro. In this review, we summarise the state of the art on organoids generated from different regions of the FRT. We discuss the potential applications of these powerful in vitro models to study normal physiology, fertility, infections, diseases, drug discovery and personalised medicine.


Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 141
Author(s):  
Iwona Ziółkowska-Suchanek

Hypoxia is the most common microenvironment feature of lung cancer tumors, which affects cancer progression, metastasis and metabolism. Oxygen induces both proteomic and genomic changes within tumor cells, which cause many alternations in the tumor microenvironment (TME). This review defines current knowledge in the field of tumor hypoxia in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), including biology, biomarkers, in vitro and in vivo studies and also hypoxia imaging and detection. While classic two-dimensional (2D) in vitro research models reveal some hypoxia dependent manifestations, three-dimensional (3D) cell culture models more accurately replicate the hypoxic TME. In this study, a systematic review of the current NSCLC 3D models that have been able to mimic the hypoxic TME is presented. The multicellular tumor spheroid, organoids, scaffolds, microfluidic devices and 3D bioprinting currently being utilized in NSCLC hypoxia studies are reviewed. Additionally, the utilization of 3D in vitro models for exploring biological and therapeutic parameters in the future is described.


Author(s):  
Daniel P. Depledge ◽  
Tomohiko Sadaoka ◽  
Werner J. D. Ouwendijk

Primary varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection causes varicella (chickenpox) and the establishment of a lifelong latent infection in ganglionic neurons. VZV reactivates in about one-third of infected individuals to cause herpes zoster, often accompanied by neurological complications. The restricted host range of VZV and, until recently, the lack of suitable in vitro models to study VZV latency have seriously hampered molecular studies of viral latency. Nevertheless, recent technological advances facilitated a series of exciting studies that resulted in the discovery of a VZV latency-associated transcript (VLT) and have redefined our understanding of VZV latency and factors that initiate reactivation. Together, these findings pave the way for a new era of research that may finally unravel the precise molecular mechanisms that govern latency. In this review, we will summarize the implications of recent discoveries in the VZV latency field from both a virus and host perspective and provide a roadmap for future studies.


2018 ◽  
Vol 167 ◽  
pp. 328-336 ◽  
Author(s):  
O.O. Koloskova ◽  
A.M. Gileva ◽  
M.G. Drozdova ◽  
M.V. Grechihina ◽  
N.E. Suzina ◽  
...  

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