Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yuanyuan Zhao, Bing Zhang, Yiming Ma, Fuqiang Zhao, Jianan Chen, Bingzhi Wang, Hua Jin, Fulai Zhou, Jiawei Guan, Qian Zhao, Hongying Wang, Qian Liu, Fangqing Zhao, Xia Wang
Summary: This study establishes an innovative model for studying intratumor functional heterogeneity in personalized oncology. The model efficiently replicates the genomic landscape of patient-derived cancer cells and tumors, while retaining the histological architecture. Moreover, it is found that tumorigenic cancer cells do not necessarily possess stem cell characteristics.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Nicholas J. Fiore, Yosif M. Ganat, Kapil Devkota, Rebecca Batorsky, Ming Lei, Kyongbum Lee, Lenore J. Cowen, Gist Croft, Scott A. Noggle, Thomas J. F. Nieland, David L. Kaplan
Summary: This article introduces a three-dimensional culture system using hiPSCs to study the biology of Parkinson's disease. The results show that this 3D system can mimic the molecular mechanisms of Parkinson's disease and provide insights into novel molecular interactions.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Isabel Calejo, Claudia J. Labrador-Rached, Manuel Gomez-Florit, Denitsa Docheva, Rui L. Reis, Rui M. A. Domingues, Manuela E. Gomes
Summary: This study successfully fabricated microengineered 3D in vitro models of physiological and pathological tendon states. These innovative models control the fate of human tendon cells through the biological signaling of platelet lysate components and the structure of electrospun microfibers. These models hold promise for drug screening and the development of new therapies.
ADVANCED HEALTHCARE MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
John Kokkinos, George Sharbeen, Koroush S. Haghighi, Rosa Mistica C. Ignacio, Chantal Kopecky, Estrella Gonzales-Aloy, Janet Youkhana, Paul Timpson, Brooke A. Pereira, Shona Ritchie, Elvis Pandzic, Cyrille Boyer, Thomas P. Davis, Lisa M. Butler, David Goldstein, Joshua A. McCarroll, Phoebe A. Phillips
Summary: This study developed a novel ex vivo explant model that maintains the 3D architecture and microenvironmental cues of human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). The model showed advantages over standard organoids, retaining functional multi-cellular stroma and fibrosis, providing unprecedented opportunities for studying PDAC biology and personalized treatment.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Review
Oncology
Eric Pion, Julia Karnosky, Sofie Boscheck, Benedikt J. Wagner, Katharina M. Schmidt, Stefan M. Brunner, Hans J. Schlitt, Thiha Aung, Christina Hackl, Silke Haerteis
Summary: The 5-year overall survival rate for pancreatic cancer is low, necessitating the use of new research models. The chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) model, based on a vascularized membrane in fertilized chicken eggs, has been widely used in cancer research. This study summarizes the existing literature on the use of the CAM model for pancreatic cancer, including drug testing, angiogenesis, personalized medicine, model modifications, and further developments.
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Carolina F. Ruivo, Nuno Bastos, Barbara Adem, Ines Batista, Cecilia Duraes, Carlos A. Melo, Stephanie A. Castaldo, Francisco Campos-Laborie, Pedro Moutinho-Ribeiro, Barbara Morao, Ana Costa-Pinto, Soraia Silva, Hugo Osorio, Sergio Ciordia, Jose Luis Costa, David Goodrich, Bruno Cavadas, Luisa Pereira, Tony Kouzarides, Guilherme Macedo, Rui Maio, Fatima Carneiro, Marilia Cravo, Raghu Kalluri, Jose Carlos Machado, Sonia A. Melo
Summary: This study reveals that pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) tumors establish a communication network mediated by cancer stem cells (CSC) and the protein agrin, which promotes tumor growth and therapy resistance. CSC release extracellular vesicles (EVs) that activate specific proteins, leading to increased tumor cell proliferation and transcriptional regulator activation. Targeting this communication network may provide a potential strategy for targeted therapy and has significant implications for cancer stem cells.
Review
Oncology
Teresa Franchi-Mendes, Rodrigo Eduardo, Giacomo Domenici, Catarina Brito
Summary: The tumour microenvironment consists of multiple non-cancerous cells that interact with tumour cells, influencing disease progression and therapeutic responses. In vitro 3D models have been developed to mimic the complexity of the tumour microenvironment, providing insights for cancer research and drug discovery. Understanding the role of each cell type in the microenvironment is crucial for uncovering potential therapeutic targets.
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Alba Herrero-Gomez, Marc Azagra, Irene Marco-Rius
Summary: This study demonstrates a viable method for cryopreservation and survival of three-dimensional cell models using a cellulose scaffold. By providing precise freezing and thawing conditions, the technique improves cell viability after thawing, making it useful for high-integrity transport of pre-assembled 3D models.
BIOMEDICAL MATERIALS
(2022)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Marcel A. Heinrich, Ahmed M. R. H. Mostafa, Jennifer P. Morton, Lukas J. A. C. Hawinkels, Jai Prakash
Summary: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly aggressive cancer type with a complex tumor microenvironment, making treatment challenging. This article provides an overview of recent developments in in vitro and in vivo models aiming to mimic the complexity of PDAC, highlighting the lack of biologically relevant models that resemble the complexity of PDAC.
ADVANCED DRUG DELIVERY REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Neng Tang, Shanshan Xu, Taiyu Song, Yudong Qiu, Jian He, Xiao Fu
Summary: ZFP91 is overexpressed in pancreatic cancer and correlates negatively with overall survival. Knock-down of ZFP91 attenuates proliferation, migration, and invasion of pancreatic cancer cells. Beta-catenin is a downstream gene of ZFP91, and its agonist can reverse the phenotype.
CELL PROLIFERATION
(2021)
Article
Oncology
Solveig Pettersen, Geir Frode oy, Eivind Valen Egeland, Siri Juell, Olav Engebraten, Gunhild Mari Maelandsmo, Lina Prasmickaite
Summary: Assessing drug sensitivity in tumor tissue ex vivo is important for personalized cancer treatment, and culturing tumor organoids and explants can provide valuable information. This study focused on breast cancer tissue and evaluated different conditions for culturing and monitoring treatment efficacy using patient-derived xenografts (PDXs). The challenge of distinguishing between tumor and normal cells in the cultured tissue was also addressed. The feasibility of using breast cancer explants ex vivo to capture differences in drug sensitivity and facilitate functional precision medicine was demonstrated.
FRONTIERS IN ONCOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Claudia C. Faria, Rita Casca, Carlos Custodia, Eunice Paisana, Tania Carvalho, Pedro Pereira, Rafael Roque, Jose Pimentel, Jose Miguens, Isidro Cortes-Ciriano, Joao T. Barata
Summary: This study established a library of patient-derived xenografts of brain metastases and demonstrated their similarity to human metastatic disease. The efficacy of two drugs was tested, and RNA sequencing revealed similar transcriptional profiles between human brain metastases and the xenografts.
CELL REPORTS MEDICINE
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Elisabetta Colombo, Maria Grazia Cattaneo
Summary: 2D cell cultures have been the standard in various applications, but they cannot replicate the complex and dynamic interactions of the tumor microenvironment (TME). Multicellular 3D models are important for studying the spatial dimension, cellular heterogeneity, and molecular networks of the TME.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Simona Gribaudo, Remi Robert, Bjorn van Sambeek, Camil Mirdass, Anna Lyubimova, Kamal Bouhali, Julien Ferent, Xavier Morin, Alexander van Oudenaarden, Stephane Nedelec
Summary: This study reports the generation of human trunk-like structures in vitro that mimic the co-development and differentiation processes of the human spine and spinal cord. The model exhibits the formation of a patterned neural tube and somites, providing insights for the development of more complex organogenesis models.
NATURE BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Satoshi Mizoguchi, Tomoshi Tsuchiya, Ryoichiro Doi, Tomohiro Obata, Mayumi Iwatake, Shintaro Hashimoto, Hirotaka Matsumoto, Hiroshi Yukawa, Hiroko Hayashi, Tao-Sheng Li, Kazuko Yamamoto, Keitaro Matsumoto, Takuro Miyazaki, Koichi Tomoshige, Takeshi Nagayasu
Summary: Two-dimensional cell cultures have played a significant role in lung cancer research, but there is increasing interest in 3D cultures as a more efficient and effective research model. This study successfully created an ex vivo lung cancer model based on bioengineered lungs, which closely replicated the 3D structure and tumor microenvironment of actual lungs. The results demonstrated the superiority of this model and its potential use in lung cancer research and pathophysiological studies.
FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Marta Alonso-Nocelo, Laura Ruiz-Canas, Patricia Sancho, Kivanc Gorgulu, Sonia Alcala, Coral Pedrero, Mireia Vallespinos, Juan Carlos Lopez-Gil, Marina Ochando, Elena Garcia-Garcia, Sara Maria David Trabulo, Paola Martinelli, Patricia Sanchez-Tomero, Carmen Sanchez-Palomo, Patricia Gonzalez-Santamaria, Lourdes Yuste, Sonja Maria Wormann, Derya Kabacaoglu, Julie Earl, Alberto Martin, Fernando Salvador, Sandra Valle, Laura Martin-Hijano, Alfredo Carrato, Mert Erkan, Laura Garcia-Bermejo, Patrick C. Hermann, Hana Algul, Gema Moreno-Bueno, Christopher Heeschen, Francisco Portillo, Amparo Cano, Bruno Sainz
Summary: LOXL2 plays an important role in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), with its loss inhibiting metastasis and prolonging overall survival, while overexpression promotes tumor growth and decreases overall survival. Macrophage-secreted OSM is an inducer of LOXL2 expression, with targeting macrophages affecting its expression and collagen fiber alignment.
Letter
Surgery
Corrado Pedrazzani, Cristian Conti, Angelo Di Vittori, Giulia Turri, Laura Bernardoni, Andrea Mafficini, Claudio Luchini, Armando Gabbrielli, Aldo Scarpa, Alfredo Guglielmi
ASIAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Anna Majkowska, Karla E. Inostroza-Brito, Mariel Gonzalez, Carlos Redondo-Gomez, Alistair Rice, Jose Carlos Rodriguez-Cabello, Armando E. Del Rio Hernandez, Alvaro Mata
Summary: The study demonstrates the possibility to generate coassembling tubular membranes with distinct structures, properties, and bioactivity by minor modifications in the molecular structures of peptide amphiphiles and elastin-like recombinamers.
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Beatriz Parejo-Alonso, Alba Royo-Garcia, Pilar Espiau-Romera, Sarah Courtois, Alvaro Curiel-Garcia, Sladjana Zagorac, Isabel Villaoslada, Kenneth P. Olive, Christopher Heeschen, Patricia Sancho
Summary: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an aggressive disease characterized by metastasis and chemoresistance. Targeting the ALK signaling pathway can decrease tumor formation and chemoresistance in PDAC by inhibiting pancreatic cancer stem cells.
BIOMEDICINE & PHARMACOTHERAPY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Verena Kast, Ali Nadernezhad, Dagmar Pette, Anastasiia Gabrielyan, Maximilian Fusenig, Kim C. Honselmann, Daniel E. Stange, Carsten Werner, Daniela Loessner
Summary: Pancreatic cancer is a devastating malignancy with limited treatment options. The tumor microenvironment, containing excessive extracellular matrix and stromal cells, acts as a barrier to drug delivery and contributes to therapy resistance and disease progression. To overcome this limitation, a multicellular 3D cancer model is developed to mimic key components of tumor tissues and assess responses to immunotherapy. Combining the CD11b agonist ADH-503 with anti-PD-1 immunotherapy and chemotherapy shows significant reduction in tumor cell viability, proliferation, metabolic activity, immunomodulation, and secretion of immunosuppressive and tumor growth-promoting cytokines.
ADVANCED HEALTHCARE MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Maren Stark, Marina Nicolai, Marina Tatura, Corinna U. Keber, Andreas Kaufmann, Ho-Ryun Chung, Emily P. Slater, Christopher Heeschen, Rita T. Lawlor, Aldo Scarpa, Detlef K. Bartsch, Thomas M. Gress, Stefan Bauer, Malte Buchholz
Summary: TLR7 is overexpressed in PDAC and is associated with shorter patient survival. Inhibition of TLR7 reduces cell viability in PDAC cell lines. However, global TLR7 deficiency does not affect survival or overall histopathological tumor features in PDAC mouse models.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Michele Bevere, Anastasios Gkountakos, Filippo Maria Martelli, Aldo Scarpa, Claudio Luchini, Michele Simbolo
Summary: Pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (PanNENs) are rare tumors originating from islets of the Langerhans in the pancreas. They can be classified into functioning and nonfunctioning PanNENs based on peptide hormone secretion. Surgery is currently the only curative treatment for PanNENs, despite advancements in therapeutic and molecular aspects. The development of high-throughput techniques has increased understanding of the molecular biology and potential vulnerabilities of PanNENs, but there is still limited knowledge about functioning PanNEN subgroups. Combining high-throughput platforms with new diagnostic tools may help characterize the differences among functioning PanNEN subgroups more efficiently.
Review
Oncology
Qi Wang, Berina Sabanovic, Azhar Awada, Chiara Reina, Alexandra Aicher, Jiajia Tang, Christopher Heeschen
Summary: Pancreatic cancer is a deadly disease with limited treatment options due to late diagnosis. Liquid biopsies, particularly circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and their single-cell omics analysis, have the potential to detect pancreatic cancer early and provide valuable molecular insights. CTCs offer comprehensive genomic, transcriptomic, epigenetic, and proteomic information that can help understand tumor heterogeneity and track cancer features. The emerging technology of ex vivo culturing of CTCs could enable the study of individual cancers and the development of personalized treatment approaches.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2023)
Review
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Rodrigo Curvello, Verena Kast, Paloma Ordonez-Moran, Alvaro Mata, Daniela Loessner
Summary: Biology can be used to design materials and approaches for tumour tissue engineering, and biomaterials are necessary for rebuilding tissue organization, composition, and function. This review discusses bioengineering strategies that recreate the pathophysiology of tumour tissues to address questions in cancer research. Tissue engineering has produced innovative tools for cancer research.
NATURE REVIEWS MATERIALS
(2023)
Review
Oncology
Nicolo Caldonazzi, Paola Chiara Rizzo, Albino Eccher, Ilaria Girolami, Giuseppe Nicolo Fanelli, Antonio Giuseppe Naccarato, Giuseppina Bonizzi, Nicola Fusco, Giulia d'Amati, Aldo Scarpa, Liron Pantanowitz, Stefano Marletta
Summary: The assessment of lymph node metastases is important in cancer staging and prognosis. By applying artificial intelligence to whole slide images, the automatic detection of metastatic cells can be achieved, leading to increased diagnostic quality. This study reviews the literature on using AI for the assessment of metastases in lymph nodes in whole slide images.
Review
Oncology
Anastasios Gkountakos, Filippo M. M. Martelli, Nicola Silvestris, Michele Bevere, Mario De Bellis, Laura Alaimo, Elena Sapuppo, Francesca Masetto, Aldo Mombello, Michele Simbolo, Elena Bariani, Michele Milella, Matteo Fassan, Aldo Scarpa, Claudio Luchini
Summary: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and distal cholangiocarcinoma (dCCA) are aggressive tumors with limited treatment options. They share histomolecular features, making differential diagnosis challenging, but also have significant differences with clinical implications. PDAC and dCCA have different prognosis and oncogenic targets, highlighting the importance of accurate diagnosis and targeted treatments.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Michele Bevere, Francesca Masetto, Maria Elena Carazzolo, Alice Bettega, Anastasios Gkountakos, Aldo Scarpa, Michele Simbolo
Summary: Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) are a heterogeneous group of diseases with different behavior and clinical manifestations. However, current mono-analyte biomarkers are ineffective in describing these complex tumors, while multi-analytical biomarkers like NETest are emerging as more effective tools for accurate diagnosis and effective treatment. This review analyzes the capabilities and limitations of different circulating biomarkers in accurate diagnosis, monitoring disease progression and response to therapy, and detecting early relapse.
Review
Health Care Sciences & Services
Chiara Frascarelli, Giuseppina Bonizzi, Camilla Rosella Musico, Eltjona Mane, Cristina Cassi, Elena Guerini Rocco, Annarosa Farina, Aldo Scarpa, Rita Lawlor, Luca Reggiani Bonetti, Stefania Caramaschi, Albino Eccher, Stefano Marletta, Nicola Fusco
Summary: This paper explores how AI and machine learning can respond to the digital evolution of biobanks. By leveraging AI, biobanks can address the challenges faced in translational and clinical research, enhancing their capabilities in data management, analysis, and interpretation. The application of AI can unlock valuable insights from biobank repositories, enabling the identification of novel biomarkers and prediction of treatment responses, and ultimately facilitating the development of personalized cancer therapies.
JOURNAL OF PERSONALIZED MEDICINE
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Federica Danzi, Raffaella Pacchiana, Andrea Mafficini, Maria T. Scupoli, Aldo Scarpa, Massimo Donadelli, Alessandra Fiore
Summary: Tumour cells possess the ability to reprogram their metabolism in order to support tumor growth, progression, and resistance. This reprogramming involves significant changes in bioenergetic, biosynthetic, and redox status to meet the increased energetic demands of the cells. Recent advancements in biochemical technologies, such as metabolomics and fluxomics, have provided researchers with powerful tools to study cancer metabolism and gain a better understanding of its complex activities on both qualitative and mechanistic levels. Additionally, the development of single-cell analysis technologies and functional genomic screening have further enhanced our ability to investigate cancer biology, identify biomarkers, and discover new therapeutic targets and treatment strategies.
SIGNAL TRANSDUCTION AND TARGETED THERAPY
(2023)