This study aimed to reproduce the characteristics of original adenocarcinoma tumors in vitro. The pancreatic cell line, SUIT-58, derived from a moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma of metastatic pancreatic cancer was used. The cells have a sheet structure in conventional cell culture without forming glands or exhibiting mucin production in the lumen. First, the necessity of scaffolds to create an adenocarcinoma-like microenvironment for SUIT-58 pancreatic cancer cells was assessed. Compared with conventional culture plates, the use of type I collagen as a scaffold played an important role in the formation of densely congested microvilli, as observed through scanning electron microscopy. As gland formation is one of the features of adenocarcinoma, we also assessed gland formation. Use of a recently developed three-dimensional culture system with air exposure resulted in the formation of large cell spheres possessing cribriform glands, which released mucin into the lumen. Transmission electron microscopy also revealed the formation of microvilli in the lumen of the glands and junctional complex at the intercellular part, which were similar to those observed in xenografts. These findings indicate that an in vitro three-dimensional culture system with air exposure reflects the intrinsic features of the original tumor, suggesting that this culture system could be useful for preliminary research of certain cancers.

中文翻译：

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胰腺癌细胞系SUIT-58暴露于空气的三维培养可以通过电镜反映原始肿瘤的内在特征


本研究旨在在体外重现原始腺癌肿瘤的特征。使用源自转移性胰腺癌的中分化腺癌的胰腺细胞系 SUIT-58。细胞在常规细胞培养物中具有片状结构，不形成腺体或在管腔中表现出粘蛋白产生。首先，评估了支架为 SUIT-58 胰腺癌细胞创建类似腺癌微环境的必要性。通过扫描电镜观察到，与传统培养板相比，使用I型胶原蛋白作为支架在致密微绒毛的形成中发挥了重要作用。由于腺体形成是腺癌的特征之一，我们还评估了腺体形成。使用最近开发的暴露于空气的三维培养系统导致形成具有筛状腺的大细胞球，将粘蛋白释放到管腔中。透射电子显微镜还显示腺体腔内微绒毛的形成和细胞间部分连接复合体的形成，这与异种移植物中观察到的相似。这些发现表明，暴露于空气的体外三维培养系统反映了原始肿瘤的内在特征，表明该培养系统可用于某些癌症的初步研究。