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Yavvari P, Laporte A, Elomaa L, Schraufstetter F, Pacharzina I, Daberkow AD, Hoppensack A, Weinhart M. 3D-Cultured Vascular-Like Networks Enable Validation of Vascular Disruption Properties of Drugs In Vitro. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:888492. [PMID: 35769106 PMCID: PMC9234334 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.888492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Accepted: 04/13/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Vascular-disrupting agents are an interesting class of anticancer compounds because of their combined mode of action in preventing new blood vessel formation and disruption of already existing vasculature in the immediate microenvironment of solid tumors. The validation of vascular disruption properties of these drugs in vitro is rarely addressed due to the lack of proper in vitro angiogenesis models comprising mature and long-lived vascular-like networks. We herein report an indirect coculture model of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) to form three-dimensional profuse vascular-like networks. HUVECs embedded and sandwiched in the collagen scaffold were cocultured with HDFs located outside the scaffold. The indirect coculture approach with the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) producing HDFs triggered the formation of progressively maturing lumenized vascular-like networks of endothelial cells within less than 7 days, which have proven to be viably maintained in culture beyond day 21. Molecular weight-dependent Texas red-dextran permeability studies indicated high vascular barrier function of the generated networks. Their longevity allowed us to study the dose-dependent response upon treatment with the three known antiangiogenic and/or vascular disrupting agents brivanib, combretastatin A4 phosphate (CA4P), and 6´-sialylgalactose (SG) via semi-quantitative brightfield and qualitative confocal laser scanning microscopic (CLSM) image analysis. Compared to the reported data on in vivo efficacy of these drugs in terms of antiangiogenic and vascular disrupting effects, we observed similar trends with our 3D model, which are not reflected in conventional in vitro angiogenesis assays. High-vascular disruption under continuous treatment of the matured vascular-like network was observed at concentrations ≥3.5 ng·ml−1 for CA4P and ≥300 nM for brivanib. In contrast, SG failed to induce any significant vascular disruption in vitro. This advanced model of a 3D vascular-like network allows for testing single and combinational antiangiogenic and vascular disrupting effects with optimized dosing and may thus bridge the gap between the in vitro and in vivo experiments in validating hits from high-throughput screening. Moreover, the physiological 3D environment mimicking in vitro assay is not only highly relevant to in vivo studies linked to cancer but also to the field of tissue regeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Anna Laporte
- Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover, Germany
| | - Laura Elomaa
- Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Inga Pacharzina
- Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Anke Hoppensack
- Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Marie Weinhart
- Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover, Germany
- *Correspondence: Marie Weinhart, ,
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Qiu Y, Wang N, Guo T, Liu S, Tang X, Zhong Z, Chen Q, Wu H, Li X, Wang J, Zhang S, Ou Y, Wang B, Ma K, Gu W, Cao J, Chen H, Duan Y. Establishment of a 3D model of tumor-driven angiogenesis to study the effects of anti-angiogenic drugs on pericyte recruitment. Biomater Sci 2021; 9:6064-6085. [PMID: 34136892 DOI: 10.1039/d0bm02107e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), as a well-vascularized tumor, has attracted increasing attention in antiangiogenic therapies. Notably, emerging studies reveal that the long-term administration of antiangiogenic drugs induces hypoxia in tumors. Pericytes, which play a vital role in vascular stabilization and maturation, have been documented to be associated with antiangiogenic drug-induced tumor hypoxia. However, the role of antiangiogenic agents in regulating pericyte behavior still remains elusive. In this study, by using immunostaining analysis, we first demonstrated that tumors obtained from HCC patients were highly angiogenic, in which vessels were irregularly covered by pericytes. Therefore, we established a new 3D model of tumor-driven angiogenesis by culturing endothelial cells, pericytes, cancer stem cells (CSCs) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) with microcarriers in order to investigate the effects and mechanisms exerted by antiangiogenic agents on pericyte recruitment during tumor angiogenesis. Interestingly, microcarriers, as supporting matrices, enhanced the interactions between tumor cells and the extracellular matrix (ECM), promoted malignancy of tumor cells and increased tumor angiogenesis within the 3D model, as determined by qRT-PCR and immunostaining. More importantly, we showed that zoledronic acid (ZA) reversed the inhibited pericyte recruitment, which was induced by sorafenib (Sora) treatment, through fostering the expression and activation of ErbB1/ErbB2 and PDGFR-β in pericytes, in both an in vitro 3D model and an in vivo xenograft HCC mouse model. Hence, our model provides a more pathophysiologically relevant platform for the assessment of therapeutic effects of antiangiogenic compounds and identification of novel pharmacological targets, which might efficiently improve the benefits of antiangiogenic treatment for HCC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaqi Qiu
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
| | - Ning Wang
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou International Campus, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
| | - Tingting Guo
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
| | - Shoupei Liu
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
| | - Xianglian Tang
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou International Campus, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
| | - Zhiyong Zhong
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou International Campus, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
| | - Qicong Chen
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou International Campus, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
| | - Haibin Wu
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
| | - Xiajing Li
- Department of Blood Transfusion, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510180, P. R. China
| | - Jue Wang
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
| | - Shuai Zhang
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Guangzhou Digestive Disease Center, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510180, P. R. China.
| | - Yimeng Ou
- Department of General Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Guangzhou 510080, P. R. China
| | - Bailin Wang
- Department of General Surgery, Guangzhou Red Cross Hospital, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510220, P. R. China
| | - Keqiang Ma
- Department of Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Surgery, Huadu District People's Hospital of Guangzhou, Guangzhou, 510800, P. R. China
| | - Weili Gu
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Guangzhou Digestive Disease Center, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510180, P. R. China.
| | - Jie Cao
- Department of General Surgery, Guangzhou Digestive Disease Center, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510180, P. R. China.
| | - Honglin Chen
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
- National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Engineering of Guangdong Province, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials and Engineering of the Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
- Innovation Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
| | - Yuyou Duan
- Laboratory of Stem Cells and Translational Medicine, Institutes for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
- National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Engineering of Guangdong Province, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials and Engineering of the Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
- Innovation Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China
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Matta R, Yousafzai MS, Murrell M, Gonzalez AL. Endothelial cell secreted metalloproteinase-2 enhances neural stem cell N-cadherin expression, clustering, and migration. FASEB J 2021; 35:e21311. [PMID: 33417253 DOI: 10.1096/fj.202002302rr] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2020] [Revised: 12/09/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Neuroblasts have a clustered phenotype critical for their unidirectional migration, which in part is dependent on signaling from microvascular endothelial cells (EC) and pericytes (PC). Diffusible signals secreted by vascular cells have been demonstrated to increase survival, proliferation, and differentiation of subventricular zone resident neural stem cells (NSC); however, the signals that promote the necessary initiating step of NSC clustering are undefined. To investigate the role of vascular cells in promoting NSC clustering and directing migration, we created a 3-D hydrogel that mimics the biomechanics, biochemistry, and architectural complexity of brain tissue. We demonstrate that EC, and not PC, have a crucial role in NSC clustering and migration, further verified through microfluidic chamber systems and traction force microscopy. Ablation of the extended NSC aggregate arm halts aggregate movement, suggesting that clustering is a prerequisite for migration. When cultured with EC, NSC clustering occurs and NSC coincidentally increase their expression of N-cadherin, as compared to NSC cultured alone. NSC-presented N-cadherin expression was increased following exposure to EC secreted metalloproteinase-2 (MMP2). We demonstrate that inhibition of MMP2 prevented NSC N-cadherin surface expression and subsequent NSC clustering, even when NSC were in direct contact with EC. Furthermore, with exogenous activation of EGFR, which serves as a downstream activator of N-cadherin cleavage, NSC form clusters. Our results suggest that EC secretion of MMP2 promotes NSC clustering through N-cadherin expression. The insight gained about the mechanisms by which EC promote NSC migration may enhance NSC therapeutic response to sites of injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Matta
- Biomedical Engineering Department, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Muhammad Sulaiman Yousafzai
- Biomedical Engineering Department, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.,Systems Biology Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - Michael Murrell
- Biomedical Engineering Department, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.,Systems Biology Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA.,Physics Department, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
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