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De Pieri A, Korman BD, Jüngel A, Wuertz-Kozak K. Engineering Advanced In Vitro Models of Systemic Sclerosis for Drug Discovery and Development. Adv Biol (Weinh) 2021; 5:e2000168. [PMID: 33852183 PMCID: PMC8717409 DOI: 10.1002/adbi.202000168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 01/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a complex multisystem disease with the highest case-specific mortality among all autoimmune rheumatic diseases, yet without any available curative therapy. Therefore, the development of novel therapeutic antifibrotic strategies that effectively decrease skin and organ fibrosis is needed. Existing animal models are cost-intensive, laborious and do not recapitulate the full spectrum of the disease and thus commonly fail to predict human efficacy. Advanced in vitro models, which closely mimic critical aspects of the pathology, have emerged as valuable platforms to investigate novel pharmaceutical therapies for the treatment of SSc. This review focuses on recent advancements in the development of SSc in vitro models, sheds light onto biological (e.g., growth factors, cytokines, coculture systems), biochemical (e.g., hypoxia, reactive oxygen species) and biophysical (e.g., stiffness, topography, dimensionality) cues that have been utilized for the in vitro recapitulation of the SSc microenvironment, and highlights future perspectives for effective drug discovery and validation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea De Pieri
- Dr. A. De Pieri, Prof. K. Wuertz-Kozak, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), 106 Lomb Memorial Rd., Rochester, NY, 14623, USA
| | - Benjamin D Korman
- Prof. B. D. Korman, Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14623, USA
| | - Astrid Jüngel
- Prof. A. Jüngel, Center of Experimental Rheumatology, University Clinic of Rheumatology, Balgrist University Hospital, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, 8008, Switzerland
- Prof. A. Jüngel, Department of Physical Medicine and Rheumatology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, 8008, Switzerland
| | - Karin Wuertz-Kozak
- Dr. A. De Pieri, Prof. K. Wuertz-Kozak, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), 106 Lomb Memorial Rd., Rochester, NY, 14623, USA
- Prof. K. Wuertz-Kozak, Schön Clinic Munich Harlaching, Spine Center, Academic Teaching Hospital and Spine Research Institute of the Paracelsus Medical University Salzburg (Austria), Munich, 81547, Germany
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Wang T, Liu XH, Guan J, Ge S, Wu MB, Lin JP, Yang LR. Advancement of multi-target drug discoveries and promising applications in the field of Alzheimer's disease. Eur J Med Chem 2019; 169:200-223. [PMID: 30884327 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2019.02.076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2019] [Revised: 02/12/2019] [Accepted: 02/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Complex diseases (e.g., Alzheimer's disease) or infectious diseases are usually caused by complicated and varied factors, including environmental and genetic factors. Multi-target (polypharmacology) drugs have been suggested and have emerged as powerful and promising alternative paradigms in modern medicinal chemistry for the development of versatile chemotherapeutic agents to solve these medical challenges. The multifunctional agents capable of modulating multiple biological targets simultaneously display great advantages of higher efficacy, improved safety profile, and simpler administration compared to single-targeted agents. Therefore, multifunctional agents would certainly open novel avenues to rationally design the next generation of more effective but less toxic therapeutic agents. Herein, the authors review the recent progress made in the discovery and design processes of selective multi-targeted agents, especially the successful application of multi-target drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Wang
- School of Biological Science, Jining Medical University, Jining, China; Key Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering of Ministry of Education, College of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, China.
| | - Xiao-Huan Liu
- School of Biological Science, Jining Medical University, Jining, China
| | - Jing Guan
- School of Biological Science, Jining Medical University, Jining, China
| | - Shun Ge
- School of Biological Science, Jining Medical University, Jining, China.
| | - Mian-Bin Wu
- Key Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering of Ministry of Education, College of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, China; Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Antifungal Drugs, Taizhou, 318000, China
| | - Jian-Ping Lin
- Key Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering of Ministry of Education, College of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, China
| | - Li-Rong Yang
- Key Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering of Ministry of Education, College of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, China
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Korntner S, Gaspar D, Zeugolis DI. Editorial: Biofunctional biomaterials and cellular systems for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019; 14:020201. [PMID: 30698161 DOI: 10.1088/1748-605x/aafd84] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie Korntner
- Regenerative, Modular & Developmental Engineering Laboratory (REMODEL), Biomedical Sciences Building, National University of Ireland Galway (NUI Galway), Galway, Ireland. Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Centre for Research in Medical Devices (CÚRAM), Biomedical Sciences Building, National University of Ireland Galway (NUI Galway), Galway, Ireland
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Totti S, Allenby MC, Dos Santos SB, Mantalaris A, Velliou EG. A 3D bioinspired highly porous polymeric scaffolding system for in vitro simulation of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. RSC Adv 2018; 8:20928-20940. [PMID: 35542351 PMCID: PMC9080900 DOI: 10.1039/c8ra02633e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2018] [Accepted: 05/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is an aggressive disease with an extremely low survival rate. This is due to the (i) poor prognosis and (ii) high resistance of the disease to current treatment options. The latter is partly due to the very complex and dense tissue/tumour microenvironment of pancreatic cancer, which contributes to the disease's progression and the inhibition of apoptotic pathways. Over the last years, advances in tissue engineering and the development of three-dimensional (3D) culture systems have shed more light into cancer research by enabling a more realistic recapitulation of the niches and structure of the tumour microenvironment. Herein, for the first time, 3D porous polyurethane scaffolds were fabricated and coated with fibronectin to mimic features of the structure and extracellular matrix present in the pancreatic cancer tumour microenvironment. The developed 3D scaffold could support the proliferation of the pancreatic tumour cells, which was enhanced with the presence of fibronectin, for a month, which is a significantly prolonged in vitro culturing duration. Furthermore, in situ imaging of cellular and biomarker distribution showed the formation of dense cellular masses, the production of collagen-I by the cells and the formation of environmental stress gradients (e.g. HIF-1α) with similar heterogeneity trends to the ones reported in in vivo studies. The results obtained in this study suggest that this bioinspired porous polyurethane based scaffold has great potential for in vitro high throughput studies of pancreatic cancer including drug and treatment screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stella Totti
- Bioprocess and Biochemical Engineering Group (BioProChem), Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Surrey Guildford GU2 7XH UK 0044-(0)-1483686577
| | - Mark C Allenby
- Biological Systems Engineering Laboratory (BSEL), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK
| | - Susana Brito Dos Santos
- Biological Systems Engineering Laboratory (BSEL), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK
| | - Athanasios Mantalaris
- Biological Systems Engineering Laboratory (BSEL), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK
| | - Eirini G Velliou
- Bioprocess and Biochemical Engineering Group (BioProChem), Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Surrey Guildford GU2 7XH UK 0044-(0)-1483686577
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Totti S, Vernardis SI, Meira L, Pérez-Mancera PA, Costello E, Greenhalf W, Palmer D, Neoptolemos J, Mantalaris A, Velliou EG. Designing a bio-inspired biomimetic in vitro system for the optimization of ex vivo studies of pancreatic cancer. Drug Discov Today 2017; 22:690-701. [PMID: 28153670 DOI: 10.1016/j.drudis.2017.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2016] [Revised: 12/16/2016] [Accepted: 01/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive and lethal human malignancies. Drug therapies and radiotherapy are used for treatment as adjuvants to surgery, but outcomes remain disappointing. Advances in tissue engineering suggest that 3D cultures can reflect the in vivo tumor microenvironment and can guarantee a physiological distribution of oxygen, nutrients, and drugs, making them promising low-cost tools for therapy development. Here, we review crucial structural and environmental elements that should be considered for an accurate design of an ex vivo platform for studies of pancreatic cancer. Furthermore, we propose environmental stress response biomarkers as platform readouts for the efficient control and further prediction of the pancreatic cancer response to the environmental and treatment input.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stella Totti
- Bioprocess and Biochemical Engineering Group (BioProChem), Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK
| | - Spyros I Vernardis
- Biological Systems Engineering Laboratory (BSEL), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ London, UK
| | - Lisiane Meira
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK
| | - Pedro A Pérez-Mancera
- Department of Molecular and Clinical Cancer Medicine, University of Liverpool,Daulby Street, Liverpool L69 3GA, UK
| | - Eithne Costello
- Department of Molecular and Clinical Cancer Medicine, University of Liverpool,Daulby Street, Liverpool L69 3GA, UK; NIHR Liverpool Pancreas Biomedical Research Unit, University of Liverpool,Daulby Street, Liverpool L69 3GA, UK
| | - William Greenhalf
- NIHR Liverpool Pancreas Biomedical Research Unit, University of Liverpool,Daulby Street, Liverpool L69 3GA, UK
| | - Daniel Palmer
- Department of Molecular and Clinical Cancer Medicine, University of Liverpool,Daulby Street, Liverpool L69 3GA, UK
| | - John Neoptolemos
- Department of Molecular and Clinical Cancer Medicine, University of Liverpool,Daulby Street, Liverpool L69 3GA, UK; NIHR Liverpool Pancreas Biomedical Research Unit, University of Liverpool,Daulby Street, Liverpool L69 3GA, UK
| | - Athanasios Mantalaris
- Biological Systems Engineering Laboratory (BSEL), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ London, UK
| | - Eirini G Velliou
- Bioprocess and Biochemical Engineering Group (BioProChem), Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK.
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