Evaluating Melanoma Viability and Proliferation in 3D Microenvironments.

Researchers often aim to incorporate microenvironmental variables such as the dimensionality and composition of the extracellular matrix into their cell-based assays. A technical challenge created by introduction of these variables is quantification of single-cell measurements and control of environmental reproducibility. Here, we detail a methodology to quantify viability and proliferation of melanoma cells in 3D collagen-based culture platforms by automated microscopy and 3D image analysis to yield robust, high-throughput results of single-cell responses to drug treatment.