Pancreatic cancer exhibits a worst prognosis owed to an aggressive tumor progression i.a. driven by chemoresistance or tumor‐stroma‐interactions. The identification of candidate genes, which promote this progression, can lead to new therapeutic targets and might improve patient's outcome. The identification of these candidates in a plethora of genes requires suitable screening protocols. The aim of the present study was to establish a universally usable device which ensures versatile cultivation, screening and handling protocols of cancer cells with the 3D spheroid model, an approved model to study tumor biology. By surface modification and alternative handling of a commercial 384‐well plate, a modified device enabling (i) 3D cultivation either by liquid overlay or by a modified hanging drop method for (ii) screening of substances as well as for tumor‐stroma‐interactions (iii) either with manual or automated handling was established. The here presented preliminary results of cell line dependent dose‐response‐relations and a stromal‐induced spheroid‐formation of the pancreatic cancer cells demonstrate the proof‐of‐principle of the versatile functionality of this device. By adapting the protocols to automation, a higher reproducibility and the ability for high‐throughput analyses were ensured.

中文翻译：

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一种改良的 384 孔装置，用于 3D 癌细胞（共）培养和筛选，用于体外肿瘤生物学研究

由于化学抗性或肿瘤-基质相互作用驱动的侵袭性肿瘤进展，胰腺癌表现出最差的预后。促进这种进展的候选基因的鉴定可以导致新的治疗靶点并可能改善患者的结果。在大量基因中识别这些候选基因需要合适的筛选方案。本研究的目的是建立一种普遍可用的设备，确保使用 3D 球体模型（一种经批准的肿瘤生物学研究模型）对癌细胞进行多功能培养、筛选和处理方案。通过对商用 384 孔板进行表面改性和替代处理，建立了一种改进的设备，能够 (i) 通过液体覆盖或改进的悬滴法进行 3D 培养，用于 (ii) 筛选物质以及肿瘤-基质相互作用 (iii) 手动或自动处理。此处介绍的细胞系依赖性剂量反应关系和基质诱导的胰腺癌细胞球体形成的初步结果证明了该装置多功能功能的原理证明。通过使协议适应自动化，确保了更高的重现性和高通量分析的能力。此处介绍的细胞系依赖性剂量反应关系和基质诱导的胰腺癌细胞球体形成的初步结果证明了该装置多功能功能的原理证明。通过使协议适应自动化，确保了更高的重现性和高通量分析的能力。此处介绍的细胞系依赖性剂量反应关系和基质诱导的胰腺癌细胞球体形成的初步结果证明了该装置多功能功能的原理证明。通过使协议适应自动化，确保了更高的重现性和高通量分析的能力。