Three-dimensional Growth of Renal Epithelial Cells in Vitro: A Tool in Toxicity Testing

1993 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Knut-Jan Andersen ◽  
Erik Ilsø Christensen ◽  
Hogne Vik

The tissue culture of multicellular spheroids from the renal epithelial cell line LLC-PK1 (proximal tubule) is described. This represents a biological system of intermediate complexity between renal tissue in vivo and simple monolayer cultures. The multicellular structures, which show many similarities to kidney tubules in vivo, including a vectorial water transport, should prove useful for studying the potential nephrotoxicity of drugs and chemicals in vitro. In addition, the propagation of renal epithelial cells as multicellular spheroids in serum-free culture may provide information on the release of specific biological parameters, which may be suppressed or masked in serum-supplemented media.

Author(s):  
Yu Takahashi ◽  
Yu Inoue ◽  
Keitaro Kuze ◽  
Shintaro Sato ◽  
Makoto Shimizu ◽  
...  

Abstract Intestinal organoids better represent in vivo intestinal properties than conventionally used established cell lines in vitro. However, they are maintained in three-dimensional culture conditions that may be accompanied by handling complexities. We characterized the properties of human organoid-derived two-dimensionally cultured intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) compared with those of their parental organoids. We found that the expression of several intestinal markers and functional genes were indistinguishable between monolayer IECs and organoids. We further confirmed that their specific ligands equally activate intestinal ligand-activated transcriptional regulators in a dose-dependent manner. The results suggest that culture conditions do not significantly influence the fundamental properties of monolayer IECs originating from organoids, at least from the perspective of gene expression regulation. This will enable their use as novel biological tools to investigate the physiological functions of the human intestine.


2006 ◽  
Vol 290 (2) ◽  
pp. C492-C498 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Alvarez de la Rosa ◽  
Ignacio Gimenez ◽  
Biff Forbush ◽  
Cecilia M. Canessa

Serum- and glucocorticoid-induced kinase 1 (SGK1) is thought to be an important regulator of Na+ reabsorption in the kidney. It has been proposed that SGK1 mediates the effects of aldosterone on transepithelial Na+ transport. Previous studies have shown that SGK1 increases Na+ transport and epithelial Na+ channel (ENaC) activity in the apical membrane of renal epithelial cells. SGK1 has also been implicated in the modulation of Na+-K+-ATPase activity, the transporter responsible for basolateral Na+ efflux, although this observation has not been confirmed in renal epithelial cells. We examined Na+-K+-ATPase function in an A6 renal epithelial cell line that expresses SGK1 under the control of a tetracycline-inducible promoter. The results showed that expression of a constitutively active mutant of SGK1 (SGK1 TS425D) increased the transport activity of Na+-K+-ATPase 2.5-fold. The increase in activity was a direct consequence of activation of the pump itself. The onset of Na+-K+-ATPase activation was observed between 6 and 24 h after induction of SGK1 expression, a delay that is significantly longer than that required for activation of ENaC in the same cell line (1 h). SGK1 and aldosterone stimulated the Na+ pump synergistically, indicating that the pathways mediated by these molecules operate independently. This observation was confirmed by demonstrating that aldosterone, but not SGK1 TS425D, induced an ∼2.5-fold increase in total protein and plasma membrane Na+-K+-ATPase α1-subunit abundance. We conclude that aldosterone increases the abundance of Na+-K+-ATPase, whereas SGK1 may activate existing pumps in the membrane in response to chronic or slowly acting stimuli.


2012 ◽  
Vol 303 (8) ◽  
pp. C862-C871 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vinita Takiar ◽  
Kavita Mistry ◽  
Monica Carmosino ◽  
Nicole Schaeren-Wiemers ◽  
Michael J. Caplan

The polarized organization of epithelial cells is required for vectorial solute transport and may be altered in renal cystic diseases. Vesicle integral protein of 17 kDa (VIP17/MAL) is involved in apical vesicle transport. VIP17/MAL overexpression in vivo results in renal cystogenesis of unknown etiology. Renal cystogenesis can occur as a consequence of defects of the primary cilium. To explore the role of VIP17/MAL in renal cystogenesis and ciliogenesis, we examined the polarization and ciliary morphology of wild-type and VIP17/MAL overexpressing Madin-Darby canine kidney renal epithelial cells grown in two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) cyst culture. VIP17/MAL is apically localized when expressed in cells maintained in 2D and 3D culture. VIP17/MAL overexpressing cells produce more multilumen cysts compared with controls. While the distributions of basolateral markers are not affected, VIP17/MAL expression results in aberrant sorting of the apical marker gp135 to the primary cilium. VIP17/MAL overexpression is also associated with shortened or absent cilia. Immunofluorescence analysis performed on kidney sections from VIP17/MAL transgenic mice also demonstrates fewer and shortened cilia within dilated lumens ( P < 0.01). These studies demonstrate that VIP17/MAL overexpression results in abnormal cilium and cyst development, in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that VIP17/MAL overexpressing mice may develop cysts secondary to a ciliary defect.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Albertyńska ◽  
Hubert Okła ◽  
Krzysztof Jasik ◽  
Danuta Urbańska-Jasik ◽  
Przemysław Pol

AbstractBabesiosis is one of the most common infections in free-living animals and is rapidly becoming significant among human zoonoses. Cases of acute renal failure in humans caused by Babesia spp. have been described in the literature. The kidneys are characterised by intense blood flow through the blood vessels, which increases the likelihood of contact with the intra-erythrocyte parasite. The aim of this study was to observe the influence of B. microti (ATCC 30221) on renal epithelial cells in vitro cultured (NRK-52E line) and Wistar rats’ kidney. Both NRK-52E cells and rats’ kidney sections were analysed by light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Necrotic changes in renal epithelial cells have been observed in vitro and in vivo. In many cross-sections through the rats’ kidney, adhesion of blood cells to the vascular endothelium, accumulation of erythrocytes and emboli were demonstrated. In NRK-52E culture, elements with a distinctly doubled cell membrane resembling B. microti were found inside the cytoplasm and adjacent to the cell layer. The study indicates a chemotactic tendency for B. microti to adhere to the renal tubules' epithelium, a possibility of piroplasms entering the renal epithelial cells, their proliferation within the cytoplasm and emboli formation.


1991 ◽  
Vol 260 (6) ◽  
pp. F906-F912 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Grenader ◽  
D. P. Healy

Proximal tubules have been shown to produce dopamine (DA) from (-)-3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-L-alanine (L-dopa) and to express DA1 dopamine (DA1) receptors linked to inhibition of sodium transport. The LLC-PK1 renal epithelial cell line expresses proximal tubule cell-like properties in vitro. Here, we sought to determine whether the LLC-PK1 cell line would be a useful model system to study dopaminergic mechanisms in vitro. LLC-PK1 cells contained high levels of aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) (Km 0.19 +/- 0.08 mM, Vmax 3.69 +/- 0.57 nmol.mg-1.min-1) and converted L-dopa to DA in a nonsaturable fashion up to 1 mM L-dopa. DA production was blocked by the AADC inhibitor carbidopa. Dopamine stimulated adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) accumulation in LLC-PK1 cells in a dose-dependent manner (50% effective concentration, 1.53 +/- 0.38 microM; maximal stimulation, 46.6 +/- 10.88 pmol/mg protein); this effect was blocked by addition of DA1-receptor antagonists. L-Dopa also stimulated cAMP accumulation, and this effect was attenuated by an equimolar concentration of carbidopa and blocked by the DA1 antagonist Sch 23390. These results indicate that LLC-PK1 cells convert L-dopa to DA, which then stimulates cAMP via a DA1 receptor coupled to activation of adenylate cyclase. Moreover, the demonstration that locally formed DA can act as an autocrine/paracrine substance in LLC-PK1 cells in vitro is consistent with a role for DA as an autocrine/paracrine substance in vivo.


1982 ◽  
Vol 95 (1) ◽  
pp. 333-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Greenburg ◽  
E D Hay

This study of epithelial-mesenchymal transformation and epithelial cell polarity in vitro reveals that environmental conditions can have a profound effect on the epithelial phenotype, cell shape, and polarity as expressed by the presence of apical and basal surfaces. A number of different adult and embryonic epithelia were suspended within native collagen gels. Under these conditions, cells elongate, detach from the explants, and migrate as individual cells within the three-dimensional lattice, a previously unknown property of well-differentiated epithelia. Epithelial cells from adult and embryonic anterior lens were studied in detail. Elongated cells derived from the apical surface develop pseudopodia and filopodia characteristic of migratory cells and acquire a morphology and ultrastructure virtually indistinguishable from that of mesenchymal cells in vivo. It is concluded from these experiments that the three-dimensional collagen gel can promote dissociation, migration, and acquisition of secretory organelles by differentiated epithelial cells, and can abolish the apical-basal cell polarity characteristic of the original epithelium.


Micromachines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 96
Author(s):  
Honglin Shen ◽  
Shuxiang Cai ◽  
Chuanxiang Wu ◽  
Wenguang Yang ◽  
Haibo Yu ◽  
...  

Three-dimensional multicellular spheroids (MCSs) have received extensive attention in the field of biomedicine due to their ability to simulate the structure and function of tissues in vivo more accurately than traditional in vitro two-dimensional models and to simulate cell–cell and cell extracellular matrix (ECM) interactions. It has become an important in vitro three-dimensional model for tumor research, high-throughput drug screening, tissue engineering, and basic biology research. In the review, we first summarize methods for MCSs generation and their respective advantages and disadvantages and highlight the advances of hydrogel and microfluidic systems in the generation of spheroids. Then, we look at the application of MCSs in cancer research and other aspects. Finally, we discuss the development direction and prospects of MCSs


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 1195
Author(s):  
Giada Bassi ◽  
Maria Aurora Grimaudo ◽  
Silvia Panseri ◽  
Monica Montesi

A hot topic in biomedical science is the implementation of more predictive in vitro models of human tissues to significantly improve the knowledge of physiological or pathological process, drugs discovery and screening. Bidimensional (2D) culture systems still represent good high-throughput options for basic research. Unfortunately, these systems are not able to recapitulate the in vivo three-dimensional (3D) environment of native tissues, resulting in a poor in vitro–in vivo translation. In addition, intra-species differences limited the use of animal data for predicting human responses, increasing in vivo preclinical failures and ethical concerns. Dealing with these challenges, in vitro 3D technological approaches were recently bioengineered as promising platforms able to closely capture the complexity of in vivo normal/pathological tissues. Potentially, such systems could resemble tissue-specific extracellular matrix (ECM), cell–cell and cell–ECM interactions and specific cell biological responses to mechanical and physical/chemical properties of the matrix. In this context, this review presents the state of the art of the most advanced progresses of the last years. A special attention to the emerging technologies for the development of human 3D disease-relevant and physiological models, varying from cell self-assembly (i.e., multicellular spheroids and organoids) to the use of biomaterials and microfluidic devices has been given.


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