Webinars
Culture Apical-Out Organoids with Xeno-free VitroGel® System
Webinar: VitroGel® for Organoids
Culture apical-out organoids with xeno-free VitroGel® system
The polarity of organoids, characterized by the asymmetric distribution of cellular components and functions, plays a vital role in their proper development and functionality. Traditionally, organoids cultured in animal-based extracellular matrices (ECMs), such as Matrigel, often exhibited apical-in polarity. This limitation hindered their application in critical research areas, including host-drug interactions, intestinal host-microbiome studies, and nutrient uptake through epithelial cells, etc. To address this, various methods were developed to try to reverse the polarity morphology of an apical-in organoids to an apical-out organoids. However, these approaches required harvesting organoids from the ECM and transferring them to suspension cultures, which altered the mechanical and bio-functional signals of the microenvironment and cannot support for long-term culture.
In this webinar, Dr. Kalhara Menikdiwela from TheWell Bioscience will discuss using the xeno-free VitroGel® system to culture organoids with apical-out polarity while supporting long-term growth in vitro. Our findings demonstrated that organoids cultured in VitroGel® exhibit apical-out polarity, in contrast to the apical-in polarity observed in animal-based hydrogels. Furthermore, organoids cultured in VitroGel® demonstrated stable and controlled growth over time, unlike the fast uncontrolled organoid growth (recapitulating growth patterns similar to tumors) commonly seen in animal-based hydrogels. Importantly, VitroGel® supported long-term organoid growth (over 60 days), a feat unachievable with traditional animal-based hydrogel systems.
Chloe Harris from Gallimore Godkin Group of Cardiff University will present their findings on how the immune system differentiates between malignant and healthy cells based on a comprehensive biobank of patient-derived Colorectal Cancer (CRC) organoids (PDOs), paired with matched healthy tissue-derived organoids and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Their findings reveal that VitroGel® effectively supports CRC PDO growth and viability across multiple passages, as demonstrated through live imaging, immunofluorescence staining of key intestinal cell markers, and an optimized LDH-based cytotoxicity assay integrated with an automated cell counting pipeline (OSCAR). Notably, organoids cultured in VitroGel® exhibited a key morphological shift, adopting an “apical-out” orientation.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- VitroGel® is pure synthetic alternative of animal-based ECM for organoid culture. The system is for room temperature operation.
- VitroGel® ORGANOID supports apical-out polarity of organoid, in contrast to the apical-in polarity observed in animal-based hydrogels.
- VitroGel® ORGANOID supported long-term organoid growth (over 60 days), which is unachievable with traditional animal-based hydrogel systems.
PRESENTERs
Kalhara Menikdiwela Ph.D.
TheWell Bioscience
Research Scientist II
Dr. Kalhara Menikdiwela is a Research Scientist II at TheWell Bioscience. Kalhara earned his doctorate from Texas Tech University, where he investigated the mechanisms linking adipose renin angiotensin system to inflammation and endoplasmic reticulum stress.
As a post-doctoral researcher at the Rutgers University New Brunswick, Kalhara explored the novel role of intestinal fatty acid binding proteins in regulating glucose metabolism and energy homeostasis through specific ligand binding using numerous models including 3D organoids.
At TheWell Bioscience, he oversees the 3D organoid modeling unit primarily focusing on developing and refining various VitroGel® hydrogel systems to support organoid cultures.
Chloe Harris
Cardiff University
Ph.D. Candidate
Chloe Harris is a Ph.D. candidate in cancer immunology at Cardiff University, funded by the NC3Rs. Her research focuses on replacing mouse immunotherapy models with human colorectal cancer organoid-T cell co-cultures, aiming to develop targeted cancer therapies while sparing healthy tissue.
Using patient-derived organoids and advanced sequencing techniques, she also works to reduce animal-derived products in research, such as Matrigel. Chloe holds an MSci with first-class honors from the University of Bristol and previously worked as a Scientist at Advanced Instruments.
