scholarly journals Microfluidic measurement of cell motility in response to applied non-homogeneous DC electric fields

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-243
Author(s):  
Marisa Rio ◽  
Sharanya Bola ◽  
Richard H. W. Funk ◽  
Gerald Gerlach
Keyword(s):  
Electric Fields ◽  
Soft Lithography ◽  
Cellular Responses ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Biological Phenomena ◽  
Inverted Microscope ◽  
Directional Cell Migration ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Dc Electric Fields

Abstract. Endogenous electric fields (EFs) play an important role in many biological processes. In order to gain an insight into these biological phenomena, externally applied electric fields are used to study cellular responses. In this work, we report the construction and fabrication of a direct current (DC)-electrically stimulated microfluidic biochip and its validation with murine photoreceptor-derived 661 W cells. The presented device has the particularity of offering a non-homogeneous EF environment that best resembles the endogenous electric fields in vitro. The fabrication process is relatively easy, namely by photolithography and soft lithography techniques and, furthermore, it enables live-cell imaging under an inverted microscope. First experimental results reveal cathodal directional cell migration upon applied DC EFs. In summary, the microfluidic biochip has proven biocompatibility and suitability for cellular electrotaxis experiments in non-homogeneous DC electric fields.

scholarly journals Cross-species comparisons and in vitro models to study tempo in development and homeostasis

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa Rayon ◽  
James Briscoe
Keyword(s):  
Biological Systems ◽  
In Vitro Models ◽  
Autonomous Control ◽  
Tissue Transplantation ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
Species Comparisons ◽  
Insight Into

Time is inherent to biological processes. It determines the order of events and the speed at which they take place. However, we still need to refine approaches to measure the course of time in biological systems and understand what controls the pace of development. Here, we argue that the comparison of biological processes across species provides molecular insight into the timekeeping mechanisms in biology. We discuss recent findings and the open questions in the field and highlight the use of in vitro systems as tools to investigate cell-autonomous control as well as the coordination of temporal mechanisms within tissues. Further, we discuss the relevance of studying tempo for tissue transplantation, homeostasis and lifespan.

scholarly journals Endothelial Cells as Tools to Model Tissue Microenvironment in Hypoxia-Dependent Pathologies

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 520
Author(s):  
Aleksandra Majewska ◽  
Kinga Wilkus ◽  
Klaudia Brodaczewska ◽  
Claudine Kieda
Keyword(s):  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Animal Testing ◽  
Tissue Microenvironment ◽  
Vessel Permeability ◽  
Biological Phenomena ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Different Tissues

Endothelial cells (ECs) lining the blood vessels are important players in many biological phenomena but are crucial in hypoxia-dependent diseases where their deregulation contributes to pathology. On the other hand, processes mediated by ECs, such as angiogenesis, vessel permeability, interactions with cells and factors circulating in the blood, maintain homeostasis of the organism. Understanding the diversity and heterogeneity of ECs in different tissues and during various biological processes is crucial in biomedical research to properly develop our knowledge on many diseases, including cancer. Here, we review the most important aspects related to ECs’ heterogeneity and list the available in vitro tools to study different angiogenesis-related pathologies. We focus on the relationship between functions of ECs and their organo-specificity but also point to how the microenvironment, mainly hypoxia, shapes their activity. We believe that taking into account the specific features of ECs that are relevant to the object of the study (organ or disease state), especially in a simplified in vitro setting, is important to truly depict the biology of endothelium and its consequences. This is possible in many instances with the use of proper in vitro tools as alternative methods to animal testing.

An Insight into Oligopeptide Transporter 3 (OPT3) family proteins

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fırat Kurt
Keyword(s):  
Stress Responses ◽  
Chelating Agent ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Biotic And Abiotic Stress ◽  
Oligopeptide Transporter ◽  
Binding Residues ◽  
Fe Homeostasis ◽  
Proteins Interactions ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Selection Of

: Oligopeptide transporter 3 (OPT3) proteins are one of the subsets of OPT clade, yet little is known about these transporters. Therefore, homolog OPT3 proteins in several plant species were investigated and characterized using bioinformatical tools. Motif and co-expression analyses showed that OPT3 proteins may be involved in both biotic and abiotic stress responses as well as growth and developmental processes. AtOPT3 usually seemed to take part in Fe homeostasis whereas ZmOPT3 putatively interacted with proteins involved in various biological processes from plant defense system to stress responses. Glutathione (GSH), as a putative alternative chelating agent, was used in the AtOPT3 and ZmOPT3 docking analyses to identify their putative binding residues. The information given in this study will contribute to the understanding of OPT3 proteins’ interactions in various pathways and to the selection of potential ligands for OPT3s.

The in vitro neonatal rat spinal cord preparation: a new insight into mammalian locomotor mechanisms

2004 ◽  
Vol 190 (5) ◽  
pp. 343-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Clarac ◽  
E. Pearlstein ◽  
J. F. Pflieger ◽  
L. Vinay
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Neonatal Rat ◽  
Rat Spinal Cord ◽  
Insight Into

scholarly journals Plant-Derived Extracellular Vesicles: Current Findings,Challenges, and Future Applications

Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 411
Author(s):  
Nader Kameli ◽  
Anya Dragojlovic-Kerkache ◽  
Paul Savelkoul ◽  
Frank R. Stassen
Keyword(s):  
Human Health ◽  
Extracellular Vesicles ◽  
Preliminary Results ◽  
In Vivo Experiments ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Protocol Standardization ◽  
Insight Into

In recent years, plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) have gained the interest of many experts in fields such as microbiology and immunology, and research in this field has exponentially increased. These nano-sized particles have provided researchers with a number of interesting findings, making their application in human health and disease very promising. Both in vitro and in vivo experiments have shown that PDEVs can exhibit a multitude of effects, suggesting that these vesicles may have many potential future applications, including therapeutics and nano-delivery of compounds. While the preliminary results are promising, there are still some challenges to face, such as a lack of protocol standardization, as well as knowledge gaps that need to be filled. This review aims to discuss various aspects of PDEV knowledge, including their preliminary findings, challenges, and future uses, giving insight into the complexity of conducting research in this field.

scholarly journals An ARF GTPase module promoting invasion and metastasis through regulating phosphoinositide metabolism

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marisa Nacke ◽  
Emma Sandilands ◽  
Konstantina Nikolatou ◽  
Álvaro Román-Fernández ◽  
Susan Mason ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Metastatic Cancer ◽  
Cellular Responses ◽  
Signalling Pathways ◽  
External Signal ◽  
Phosphoinositide Metabolism ◽  
Invasion And Metastasis ◽  
3 Dimensional

AbstractThe signalling pathways underpinning cell growth and invasion use overlapping components, yet how mutually exclusive cellular responses occur is unclear. Here, we report development of 3-Dimensional culture analyses to separately quantify growth and invasion. We identify that alternate variants of IQSEC1, an ARF GTPase Exchange Factor, act as switches to promote invasion over growth by controlling phosphoinositide metabolism. All IQSEC1 variants activate ARF5- and ARF6-dependent PIP5-kinase to promote PI(3,4,5)P3-AKT signalling and growth. In contrast, select pro-invasive IQSEC1 variants promote PI(3,4,5)P3 production to form invasion-driving protrusions. Inhibition of IQSEC1 attenuates invasion in vitro and metastasis in vivo. Induction of pro-invasive IQSEC1 variants and elevated IQSEC1 expression occurs in a number of tumour types and is associated with higher-grade metastatic cancer, activation of PI(3,4,5)P3 signalling, and predicts long-term poor outcome across multiple cancers. IQSEC1-regulated phosphoinositide metabolism therefore is a switch to induce invasion over growth in response to the same external signal. Targeting IQSEC1 as the central regulator of this switch may represent a therapeutic vulnerability to stop metastasis.

scholarly journals Cancer Stem Cell Microenvironment Models with Biomaterial Scaffolds In Vitro

Processes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 45
Author(s):  
Ghmkin Hassan ◽  
Said M. Afify ◽  
Shiro Kitano ◽  
Akimasa Seno ◽  
Hiroko Ishii ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Cancer Biology ◽  
Advanced Technology ◽  
Cancer Microenvironment ◽  
Critical Factors ◽  
Self Renewal ◽  
Cell Microenvironment ◽  
Biological Phenomena ◽  
Biomaterial Scaffolds

Defined by its potential for self-renewal, differentiation and tumorigenicity, cancer stem cells (CSCs) are considered responsible for drug resistance and relapse. To understand the behavior of CSC, the effects of the microenvironment in each tissue are a matter of great concerns for scientists in cancer biology. However, there are many complicated obstacles in the mimicking the microenvironment of CSCs even with current advanced technology. In this context, novel biomaterials have widely been assessed as in vitro platforms for their ability to mimic cancer microenvironment. These efforts should be successful to identify and characterize various CSCs specific in each type of cancer. Therefore, extracellular matrix scaffolds made of biomaterial will modulate the interactions and facilitate the investigation of CSC associated with biological phenomena simplifying the complexity of the microenvironment. In this review, we summarize latest advances in biomaterial scaffolds, which are exploited to mimic CSC microenvironment, and their chemical and biological requirements with discussion. The discussion includes the possible effects on both cells in tumors and microenvironment to propose what the critical factors are in controlling the CSC microenvironment focusing the future investigation. Our insights on their availability in drug screening will also follow the discussion.

scholarly journals Combined In Vitro and In Vivo Approaches to Propose a Putative Adverse Outcome Pathway for Acute Lung Inflammation Induced by Nanoparticles: A Study on Carbon Dots

Nanomaterials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 180
Author(s):  
Maud Weiss ◽  
Jiahui Fan ◽  
Mickaël Claudel ◽  
Luc Lebeau ◽  
Françoise Pons ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dots ◽  
Lung Inflammation ◽  
Adverse Outcome ◽  
Cellular Responses ◽  
Target Cells ◽  
Inflammasome Activation ◽  
Adverse Outcome Pathway ◽  
Acute Lung Inflammation

With the growth of nanotechnologies, concerns raised regarding the potential adverse effects of nanoparticles (NPs), especially on the respiratory tract. Adverse outcome pathways (AOP) have become recently the subject of intensive studies in order to get a better understanding of the mechanisms of NP toxicity, and hence hopefully predict the health risks associated with NP exposure. Herein, we propose a putative AOP for the lung toxicity of NPs using emerging nanomaterials called carbon dots (CDs), and in vivo and in vitro experimental approaches. We first investigated the effect of a single administration of CDs on mouse airways. We showed that CDs induce an acute lung inflammation and identified airway macrophages as target cells of CDs. Then, we studied the cellular responses induced by CDs in an in vitro model of macrophages. We observed that CDs are internalized by these cells (molecular initial event) and induce a series of key events, including loss of lysosomal integrity and mitochondrial disruption (organelle responses), as well as oxidative stress, inflammasome activation, inflammatory cytokine upregulation and macrophage death (cellular responses). All these effects triggering lung inflammation as tissular response may lead to acute lung injury.

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