School of Materials Science & Engineering, Donghu New & High Technology Development Zone, Wuhan Institute of Technology, LiuFang Campus, No. 206, Guanggu 1st road, Wuhan, 430205, People's Republic of China.
Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas Tech University, 807 Canton Ave, Lubbock, TX, 79409, USA.
Pharm Res. 2022 Feb;39(2):329-340. doi: 10.1007/s11095-022-03195-0. Epub 2022 Feb 15.
Although two-dimensional (2D) cell cultures are the standard in cell research, one pivotal disadvantage is the lack of cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix (ECM) signaling in the culture milieu. However, such signals occur in three-dimensional (3D) in vivo environments and are essential for cell differentiation, proliferation, and a range of cellular functions. In this study, we developed a microfluidic device to proliferate and differentiate functional adipose tissue and adipocytes by utilizing 3D cell culture technology. This device was used to generate a tissue-specific 3D microenvironment to differentiate 3T3-L1 preadipocytes into either visceral white adipocytes using visceral adipose tissue (VAT) or subcutaneous white adipose tissue (SAT). The microchip has been tested and validated by functional assessments including cell morphology, inflammatory response to a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge, GLUT4 tracking, and gene expression analyses. The biomimetic microfluidic chip is expected to mimic functional adipose tissues that can replace 2D cell cultures and allow for more accurate analysis of adipose tissue physiology.
尽管二维 (2D) 细胞培养是细胞研究的标准方法，但一个关键的缺点是缺乏细胞-细胞和细胞-细胞外基质 (ECM) 在培养环境中的信号传递。然而，这种信号在三维 (3D) 体内环境中发生，对于细胞分化、增殖和一系列细胞功能至关重要。在这项研究中，我们开发了一种微流控装置，通过利用 3D 细胞培养技术来增殖和分化功能性脂肪组织和脂肪细胞。该装置用于生成组织特异性的 3D 微环境，使 3T3-L1 前脂肪细胞分化为内脏白色脂肪细胞或皮下白色脂肪细胞，使用内脏脂肪组织 (VAT) 或皮下脂肪组织 (SAT)。该微芯片已经通过功能评估进行了测试和验证，包括细胞形态、脂多糖 (LPS) 挑战的炎症反应、GLUT4 追踪和基因表达分析。这种仿生微流控芯片有望模拟功能性脂肪组织，可以替代 2D 细胞培养，并允许更准确地分析脂肪组织生理学。
