Logo image
Using 3D-bioprinted models to study pediatric neural crest-derived tumors
Journal article   Open access

Using 3D-bioprinted models to study pediatric neural crest-derived tumors

Colin H. Quinn, Andee M. Beierle, Janet R. Julson, Michael E. Erwin, Hasan Alrefai, Hooper R. Markert, Jerry E. Stewart, Sara Claire Hutchins, Laura V Bownes, Jamie M. Aye, …
International journal of bioprinting, Vol.9(4), pp.115-128
01/01/2023
DOI: 10.18063/ijb.723
PMCID: PMC10261178
PMID: 37323483
url
https://doi.org/10.18063/ijb.723View
Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

The use of three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting has remained at the forefront of tissue engineering and has recently been employed for generating bioprinted solid tumors to be used as cancer models to test therapeutics. In pediatrics, neural crest-derived tumors are the most common type of extracranial solid tumors. There are only a few tumor-specific therapies that directly target these tumors, and the lack of new therapies remains detrimental to improving the outcomes for these patients. The absence of more efficacious therapies for pediatric solid tumors, in general, may be due to the inability of the currently employed preclinical models to recapitulate the solid tumor phenotype. In this study, we utilized 3D bioprinting to generate neural crest-derived solid tumors. The bioprinted tumors consisted of cells from established cell lines and patient-derived xenograft tumors mixed with a 6% gelatin/1% sodium alginate bioink. The viability and morphology of the bioprints were analyzed via bioluminescence and immunohisto chemistry, respectively. We compared the bioprints to traditional two-dimensional (2D) cell culture under conditions such as hypoxia and therapeutics. We successfully produced viable neural crest-derived tumors that retained the histology and immunostaining characteristics of the original parent tumors. The bioprinted tumors propagated in culture and grew in orthotopic murine models. Furthermore, compared to cells grown in traditional 2D culture, the bioprinted tumors were resistant to hypoxia and chemotherapeutics, suggesting that the bioprints exhibited a phenotype that is consistent with that seen clinically in solid tumors, thus potentially making this model superior to traditional 2D culture for preclinical investigations. Future applications of this technology entail the potential to rapidly print pediatric solid tumors for use in high -throughput drug studies, expediting the identification of novel, individualized therapies.
Engineering Materials Science Technology Engineering, Biomedical Materials Science, Biomaterials Science & Technology

Details

Metrics

Logo image