Abstract 2641: Development of a 3D in vitro model of the prostate tumor microenvironment
Authors: Iyer Divya , Bonteanu Andrei , Zhu Jedidiah Z. , Shepherd Peter , Kittles Rick , Navone Nora M. , Harrington Daniel A. , Dexter Dwayne , Bircsak Kristin M. 
Published: July 2021

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common occurring cancer in men and the second-most leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. To improve patient outcome, research tools which mimic the prostate tumor microenvironment (TME) and accurately predict drug response are urgently needed. However, current in vitro PCa models do not recapitulate the complexities of the prostate TME including three-dimensional (3D) orientation, perfusion, extracellular matrix (ECM), and the presence of multiple cell types such as tumor cells, fibroblasts, and endothelium. Further, many complex in vitro model systems fail to maintain the throughput required for robust drug screening. To address this need, here, we highlight the stepwise development of a 3D in vitro PCa model by optimizing the individual culture conditions for each cell type (PCa cells, fibroblasts (FB), endothelial cells (EC)) within MIMETAS' high throughput perfusable 3D cell culture platform, the OrganoPlate® 2-lane 96. All monocultures (PCa, fibroblast, endothelial cell) were viable and expressed respective phenotypic markers (PCa: AR and PSA; FB: vimentin; EC: CD-31, VE-cadherin) as detected by immunofluorescent staining and high-content imaging. To demonstrate the statistical retention of heterogeneity within PCa populations, PCa cells (MDA-PCa-2b) were pre-labeled with 4 different tracking dyes and clustered into multicellular aggregates using a multiwell, ultra-low attachment plate. After 3D encapsulation within a migration permissive hyaluronic acid (MP-HA) hydrogel, PCa clusters retained uniform size clusters and even distribution of the pre-labeled populations within each cluster. Additionally, use of this pre-clustering reduced cell debris in the encapsulated 3D cultures. 3D FB cultures, mimicking normal or reactive stroma, were established with bone stroma cell lines and primary human mesenchymal stem cells. The cells' phenotypic stretched morphology and migration through the ECM were tuned by tailoring the hydrogel crosslinking assessed further by measuring the permeability of 2,000 kDa FITC-dextran. EC (primary human lung microvascular endothelium) were seeded against MP-HA to form a tubule structure within the perfusion channel. Culture conditions were optimized to reduce the permeability of smaller molecules (4.4, 150 KDa Dextran) through EC barriers and further imaging revealed the formation of a 3D blood vessel-like structure within the perfusion channel. Studies are ongoing to combine all three cell types into a single model. This stepwise approach, for building a complex, 3D prostate tumor model, will enable the full incorporation of all cell types and ECM into a single model which will have the potential to better recapitulate the in vivo prostate TME and improve the predictivity of PCa in vitro models.

Citation Format: Divya Iyer, Andrei Bonteanu, Jedidiah Z. Zhu, Peter Shepherd, Rick Kittles, Nora M. Navone, Daniel A. Harrington, Dwayne Dexter, Kristin M. Bircsak. Development of a 3D in vitro model of the prostate tumor microenvironment [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr 2641.