Publication Date:
2014-02-05
Description:
Cell and tissue culture can be performed on different substrates such as on plastic, in Matrigel™, and on Gelfoam® sponge matrix. Each of these substrates consists of a very different surface, ranging from hard and inflexible, a gel, and a sponge-matrix, respectively. Folkman and Moscona found that cell shape was tightly coupled to DNA synthesis and cell growth. Therefore, the flexibility of a substrate is important for cells to maintain their optimal shape. Human osteosarcoma cells, stably expressing a fusion protein of α v integrin and green fluorescent protein (GFP), grew as a simple monolayer without any structure formation on the surface of a plastic dish. When the osteosarcoma cells were cultured within Matrigel™, the cancer cells formed colonies but no other structures. When the cancer cells were seeded on Gelfoam®, a sponge gel matrix, the cells formed three-dimensional tissue-like structures. The behavior of 143B osteosarcoma cells in Gelfoam® culture is remarkably different from those of these cells in monolayer culture or in Matrigel™. Tissue-like structures were observed only in Gelfoam® culture. The data in this report suggest a flexible structural substrate such as Gelfoam® provides a more in vivo-like culture condition than monolayer culture or Matrigel™ and that Matrigel™ does not result in actual three-dimensional culture. J. Cell. Biochem. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Electronic ISSN:
0091-7419
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Medicine
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