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Pattern formation of cancer cells: monitoring new therapeutic targets

Doctoral student:
Asier Inchaurraga Llamas (Sobresaliente)
Year:
2023
University:
University of the Basque Country
Director(s):
Enrique Azuaje & Lourdes Basabe-Desmonts
Description:

Cell culture serves as a primary tool for cultivating cells outside of an organism under controlled conditions to investigate cell fate and behaviour. Its main objective is to mimic physiological conditions found within a living organism to attain the most realistic data. In the past few years, significant progress has been made on establishing new technologies that can faithfully replicate these physiological conditions. The Microfluidics Cluster UPV/EHU has developed a novel microfluidic platform called CELLSTUDIO, which using the microcontact printing, permits to create from dozens to hundreds of individual cell islands with total control over cell interactions with the environment and between them. It also permits monitoring of cell secretion. The main objective of this work is to study cancer cell responses under controlled signalling environments and the applicability of the CELLSTUDIO microfluidic device in the search for therapeutic targets. For that, HeLa cells were used as a cancer model and the secretion of VEGF and FGF-2 was monitored under stimulation conditions and no stimulation conditions. Consequently, this innovative device possesses the potential to serve as a future cell culture platform for comprehending cell biology. It presents an ethical alternative to animal testing while providing comprehensive monitoring capabilities to better comprehend cell fate.