2D and 3D Culture Systems: Current Trends and Biomedical Applications

A special issue of Pharmaceuticals (ISSN 1424-8247). This special issue belongs to the section "Biopharmaceuticals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 July 2025 | Viewed by 6284

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of General Biology, Center of Biological Sciences, State University of Londrina (UEL), Londrina 86057-970, Brazil
Interests: natural products; chemoprevention; cell culture systems; 3D culture; oncogenetic; cancer biomarkers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of General Biology, Center of Biological Sciences, State University of Londrina (UEL), Londrina 86057-970, Brazil
Interests: cell culture systems; antimutagenesis; genotoxicity; oncogenetic; cancer biomarkers; epigenetic
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo (ICB/USP), São Paulo 05508-000, Brazil
Interests: mutagenesis; DNA Repair; 3D cell culture; 3D spheroids; translesion synthesis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue of Pharmaceuticals will address recent advances in 2D and 3D in vitro cultures, exploring current trends and innovative biomedical applications. We are seeking submissions that discuss the latest techniques and highlight the implications of these advances in biomedical research, including disease modeling (e.g., cancer), drug testing and screening, tissue morphology and engineering, and regenerative therapies. Emerging technologies driving the evolution of these culture systems, promoting a deeper understanding of cellular processes and opening new possibilities for clinical applications will also be explored. In summary, the issue provides a holistic and updated view of 2D and 3D in vitro cultures, consolidating essential information for researchers and professionals involved in biomedicine.

Interested researchers are invited to submit an original research paper and review articles for publication in this Special Issue. Articles employing 3D cell cultures and those comparing results between 2D and 3D models are of particular interest. Studies concerning spheroids obtained through ex vivo propagation from individual patients (organoids) are also encouraged.

Dr. Juliana Mara Serpeloni
Prof. Dr. Colus Ilce Mara
Dr. Diego Luís Ribeiro
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pharmaceuticals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • spheroids
  • organoids
  • 3D cultures
  • tissue engineering
  • disease modelling
  • regenerative medicine
  • cell-extracellular matrix interaction
  • drug screening

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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21 pages, 73459 KiB  
Article
Impact of Post-Thaw Enrichment of Primary Human Hepatocytes on Steatosis, Inflammation, and Fibrosis in the TruVivo® System
by Justin J. Odanga, Sharon M. Anderson, Sharon C. Presnell, Edward L. LeCluyse, Jingsong Chen and Jessica R. Weaver
Pharmaceuticals 2024, 17(12), 1624; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph17121624 - 3 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1277
Abstract
Background: Liver diseases are a global health concern. Many in vitro liver models utilize cryopreserved primary human hepatocytes (PHHs), which commonly undergo post-thaw processing through colloidal silica gradients to remove debris and enrich for a viable PHH population. Post-thaw processing effects on [...] Read more.
Background: Liver diseases are a global health concern. Many in vitro liver models utilize cryopreserved primary human hepatocytes (PHHs), which commonly undergo post-thaw processing through colloidal silica gradients to remove debris and enrich for a viable PHH population. Post-thaw processing effects on healthy PHHs are partially understood, but the consequences of applying disease-origin PHHs to post-thaw density gradient separation have not been described. Methods: Using the TruVivo® system, diseased, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and fibrotic PHHs were cultured for 14 days after initially being subjected to either low-density (permissive) or high-density (selective) gradients using Percoll-based thawing medium. Results: Changes in functionality, including albumin and urea secretion and CYP3A4 activity, were measured in diseased, T2DM, and fibrotic PHHs enriched in low Percoll compared to PHHs enriched in high Percoll. Lipogenesis increased in the PHHs enriched in low Percoll. Higher expression of CK18 and TGF-β, two fibrotic markers, and changes in expression of the macrophage markers CD68 and CD163 were also measured. Conclusions: The use of Percoll for the enrichment of PHHs post-thaw results in differences in attachment and functionality, along with changes in diseased phenotypes, in the TruVivo® system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 2D and 3D Culture Systems: Current Trends and Biomedical Applications)
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11 pages, 4429 KiB  
Article
Comparison of Glioblastoma Cell Culture Platforms Based on Transcriptional Similarity with Paired Tissue
by Junseong Park, Ilkyoo Koh, Junghwa Cha, Yoojung Oh, Jin-Kyoung Shim, Hyejin Kim, Ju Hyung Moon, Eui Hyun Kim, Jong Hee Chang, Pilnam Kim and Seok-Gu Kang
Pharmaceuticals 2024, 17(4), 529; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph17040529 - 19 Apr 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2584
Abstract
No standardized in vitro cell culture models for glioblastoma (GBM) have yet been established, excluding the traditional two-dimensional culture. GBM tumorspheres (TSs) have been highlighted as a good model platform for testing drug effects and characterizing specific features of GBM, but a detailed [...] Read more.
No standardized in vitro cell culture models for glioblastoma (GBM) have yet been established, excluding the traditional two-dimensional culture. GBM tumorspheres (TSs) have been highlighted as a good model platform for testing drug effects and characterizing specific features of GBM, but a detailed evaluation of their suitability and comparative performance is lacking. Here, we isolated GBM TSs and extracellular matrices (ECM) from tissues obtained from newly diagnosed IDH1 wild-type GBM patients and cultured GBM TSs on five different culture platforms: (1) ordinary TS culture liquid media (LM), (2) collagen-based three-dimensional (3D) matrix, (3) patient typical ECM-based 3D matrix, (4) patient tumor ECM-based 3D matrix, and (5) mouse brain. For evaluation, we obtained transcriptome data from all cultured GBM TSs using microarrays. The LM platform exhibited the most similar transcriptional program to paired tissues based on GBM genes, stemness- and invasiveness-related genes, transcription factor activity, and canonical signaling pathways. GBM TSs can be cultured via an easy-to-handle and cost- and time-efficient LM platform while preserving the transcriptional program of the originating tissues without supplementing the ECM or embedding it into the mouse brain. In addition to applications in basic cancer research, GBM TSs cultured in LM may also serve as patient avatars in drug screening and pre-clinical evaluation of targeted therapy and as standardized and clinically relevant models for precision medicine. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 2D and 3D Culture Systems: Current Trends and Biomedical Applications)
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Review

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27 pages, 1853 KiB  
Review
Two- and Three-Dimensional Culture Systems: Respiratory In Vitro Tissue Models for Chemical Screening and Risk-Based Decision Making
by Joanne Wallace, Mary C. McElroy, Mitchell Klausner, Richard Corley and Seyoum Ayehunie
Pharmaceuticals 2025, 18(1), 113; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18010113 - 16 Jan 2025
Viewed by 1566
Abstract
Risk of lung damage from inhaled chemicals or substances has long been assessed using animal models. However, New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) that replace, reduce, and/or refine the use of animals in safety testing such as 2D and 3D cultures are increasingly being used [...] Read more.
Risk of lung damage from inhaled chemicals or substances has long been assessed using animal models. However, New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) that replace, reduce, and/or refine the use of animals in safety testing such as 2D and 3D cultures are increasingly being used to understand human-relevant toxicity responses and for the assessment of hazard identification. Here we review 2D and 3D lung models in terms of their application for inhalation toxicity assessment. We highlight a key case study for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in which a 3D model was used to assess human toxicity and replace the requirement for a 90-day inhalation toxicity study in rats. Finally, we consider the regulatory guidelines for the application of NAMs and potential use of different lung models for aerosol toxicity studies depending on the regulatory requirement/context of use. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 2D and 3D Culture Systems: Current Trends and Biomedical Applications)
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