Interaction among a three-dimensional scaffold, vessels and cells in the culture of tumor cells

Hu Xue-feng; Zheng Li; Zhao Jin-min

doi:10.3969/j.issn.2095-4344.2013.42.016

Abstract：BACKGROUND:The tumor tissue engineering can build an integrated culture model to ful y simulate the in vivo microenvironment of tumor growth, which can be used to study tumor developmental dynamics and related treatment strategies. <br> OBJECTIVE:To review the three-dimensional culture of tumor cells using tumor engineering technology. <br> METHODS:PubMed database was retrieved for articles related to tumor engineering, three-dimensional culture of tumor cells, biological scaffold materials and tumor microenvironment published from January 1992 to March 2013. <br> RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Three-dimensional culture, because of its reproducible tissue and cellgrowth in vivo, has become an important platform for study of tumor resistance, invasiveness and tumor microenvironment. The three-dimensional culture has showed a trend to gradual y replace the flat culture technique in many fields, and provides a research platform which is very close to in vivo environment. In recent years, with the development of tumor engineering, a variety of new polymer materials have been used in the three-dimensional culture of tumor cells. Three-dimensional culture technology is becoming a hotspot in the field of tumor biology, in which, using a variety of methods and materials, the cells show a growth in the spatial manner to form a biological support or matrix similar to in vivo growth environment. Biomaterials have become the soil on which seed cells can grow wel , and plays an alternative to the extracellular matrix or the matrix of tissues and organs in the tumor engineering. Therefore, the three-dimensional cellculture has been widely used in cancer research, which has become a powerful tool to tumor drug resistance, angiogenesis, cel-cellinteraction, signal transduction, stem cells and other research.