Adv Healthc Mater. 2013 Jul;2(7):1056-62. doi: 10.1002/adhm.201200445.
Three-dimensional cellular models that mimic disease are being increasingly investigated and have opened an exciting new research area into understanding pathomechanisms. The advantage of 3D in vitro disease models is that they allow systematic and in depth studies of physiological and pathophysiological processes with less costs and ethical concerns that have arisen with animal models. The purpose of the 30 approach is to allow crosstalk between cells and microenvironment, and with cues from the microenvironment,cells can assemble their niche similar to in vivo conditions. The use of 3D models for mimicking disease processes such as cancer, osteoarthritis etc., Is only emerging and allows multidisciplinary teams consisting of tissue engineers, biologist biomaterial scientists and clinicians to work closely together. While in vitro systems require rigorous testing before they can be considered as replicates of the in vivo model, major steps have been made,suggesting that they will become powerful tools for studying physiological and pathophysiological processes. This paper aims to summarize some of the existing 3D models and proposes a novel 3D model of the eye structures that are involved in the most common cause of blindness in the Western World,namely age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
目前，人们越来越多地研究能够模拟疾病的三维细胞模型，这为深入了解发病机制开辟了一个令人兴奋的新研究领域。与动物模型相比，3D 体外疾病模型的优势在于可以以较低的成本和较少的伦理问题，对生理和病理生理过程进行系统和深入的研究。该方法的目的是允许细胞与微环境之间进行串扰，并且在微环境的提示下，细胞可以类似于体内条件组装它们的小生境。使用 3D 模型来模拟疾病过程，如癌症、骨关节炎等，才刚刚出现，这使得由组织工程师、生物学家、生物材料科学家和临床医生组成的多学科团队能够密切合作。虽然体外系统在被认为是体内模型的复制品之前需要进行严格的测试，但已经取得了重大进展，这表明它们将成为研究生理和病理生理过程的有力工具。本文旨在总结一些现有的 3D 模型，并提出一种新的涉及西方世界最常见致盲原因的眼部结构 3D 模型，即年龄相关性黄斑变性（AMD）。
