Three-Dimensional Culture of Glioblastoma Cells Using a Tissueoid Cell Culture System

In classical cell culture techniques, cancer cells typically proliferate in a single layer by adhering to the undersurface of laboratory vessels. Consequently, concerns have been raised regarding the fidelity of the morphological and functional characteristics of these cultured cancer cells compared to those of their <i>in vivo</i> counterparts. Our previous studies have investigated various epithelial malignant tumors utilizing the Tissueoid cell culture system, a three-dimensional (3D) cultivation method employing Cellbed-a nonwoven sheet composed of high-purity silica fibers as a scaffold. In this investigation, we have achieved successful 3D culturing of glioblastoma cells (A172 and T98G), which are non-epithelial in nature. As such our focus is to juxtapose their morphological features against that of those cultivated via conventional two-dimensional (2D) methods. Our findings will be elucidated using immunostaining, immunofluorescence staining, and scanning electron microscopy, substantiated with accompanying imaging. Notably, cells cultured in the 3D environment exhibited distinct morphological attributes compared to those of their 2D counterparts, notably featuring pronounced cellular protrusions. We envisage the continued utilization of the 3D culture platform to facilitate diverse avenues of research, encompassing the exploration of novel therapeutic modalities for glioblastoma cells and beyond.