Abstract
In vitro cancer research models require the utmost accuracy and precision to effectively investigate physiological pathways and mechanisms, as well as test the therapeutic efficacy of anticancer drugs. Although two-dimensional (2D) cell culture models have been the traditional hallmark of cancer research, increasing evidence suggests 2D tumor models cannot accurately recapitulate complex aspects of tumor cells and drug responses. Three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures, however, are more physiologically relevant in oncology as they model the cancer network and microenvironment better, allowing for development and assessment of natural products and other anticancer drugs. The present review outlines unprecedented ways in which multicellular spheroid models, organoid models, hydrogel models, microfluidic devices, microfiber scaffold models, and tissue-engineered scaffold models are used in this research. The future of cancer research lies within 3D cell cultures, and as this approach improves, cancer research will continue to advance.
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Abbreviations
- 2D:
-
Two-dimensional
- 3D:
-
Three-dimensional
- 3DP:
-
3D printing
- AQP5:
-
Aquaporin 5
- BGD:
-
Bendamustine, gemcitabine, dexamethasone
- CPDD:
-
Cisplatin
- CSC:
-
Cancer stem cells
- ECM:
-
Extracellular matrix
- EIT:
-
Electrical impedance tomography
- EMT:
-
Epithelial to mesenchyme transition
- FEM:
-
Finite element method
- fFn:
-
Fibrillar fibronectin
- Fn:
-
Fibronectin
- GelMA:
-
Gelatin methacryloyl
- GSCs:
-
Glioblastoma stem cells
- HCC:
-
Hepatocellular carcinoma
- HTS:
-
High-throughput screening
- HUVECs:
-
Human umbilical vein endothelial cells
- Micro-CT:
-
X-ray microcomputed tomography
- MPM:
-
Malignant pleural mesothelioma
- NAP1:
-
Nck-associated protein 1
- NSCLC:
-
Non-small-cell lung cancer
- OC:
-
Ovarian cancer
- OXY:
-
Oxyresveratrol
- PDAC:
-
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
- PDGFBB:
-
Platelet-derived growth factor BB
- PEG:
-
Polyethylene glycol
- PEM:
-
Pemetrexed
- PET:
-
Polyethylene terephthalate
- PLA:
-
Polylactic acid
- PLGA:
-
Poly(lactide-co-glycolide)
- PVA:
-
Poly(vinyl acetate)
- SCAPs:
-
Stem cells from apical papilla
- TE:
-
Tissue engineering
- TRPV4:
-
Transient receptor potential cation channel
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Acknowledgments
This work was supported in part by NIH grants R01DE028351 and R03DE028387 and CURS Summer Scholars (to Y. Teng).
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Jensen, C., Shay, C., Teng, Y. (2022). The New Frontier of Three-Dimensional Culture Models to Scale-Up Cancer Research. In: Guest, P.C. (eds) Physical Exercise and Natural and Synthetic Products in Health and Disease. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2343. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-1558-4_1
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