VitroGel® ORGANOID Reveals Unique Pathway Shifts in HOSE Cells Exposed to Tumor Microenvironment

VitroGel® ORGANOID-4 deepened ovarian cancer research by allowing 3D spheroid formation and transcriptomic analysis, identifying key signaling STAT1 and GREM1 activation pathways.

Institutions:
University of Oulu; Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland; University of Helsinki; Tampere University Hospital and Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology; Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine; Karolinska Institutet.

Team:
Emilia Piki, Alice Dini, Frida Rantanen, Franziska Bentz, Lassi Paavolainen, Harlan Barker, Juuli Raivola, Akira Hirasawa, Olli Kallioniemi, Astrid Murumägi, and Daniela Ungureanu

Category:
3D culture

Hydrogel:
VitroGel® ORGANOID-4 (Cat. No: VHM04-4)

This study explored the molecular and functional profiling of inmortalized primary human ovarian surface epithelium (HOSE1C and HOSE2C) and their comparison with high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) cell lines. Using single-cell transcriptomics, high-content imaging, and high-throughput drug screening, the research uncovered distinct phenotypic and drug response patterns between normal and malignant ovarian cells.

VitroGel® ORGANOID played a critical role in simulating the complex tumor microenvironment essential for this study. VitroGel® enabled researchers to monitor the growth dynamics of both normal and malignant ovarian cells over 14 days. This platform not only supported robust 3D spheroid formation in HGSOC cells, showcasing their enhanced proliferation and EMT-like characteristics, but also highlighted the absence of such growth in HOSE cells, affirming their stromal-like phenotype.

Beyond enabling the structural growth of spheroids, VitroGel® ORGANOID allowed the investigation of gene expression changes, particularly under tumor-like conditions. VitroGel®’s supportive environment facilitated the analysis of how HOSE1C and HOSE2C cells responded differently to cancer-cell-derived conditioned media, elucidating key signaling pathways such as STAT1 and GREM1 activation.

By providing a versatile and reproducible 3D culture platform, VitroGel® ORGANOID facilitated a deeper understanding of ovarian cancer progression and cellular responses to the tumor microenvironment, aiding in the identification of targeted therapeutic strategies.