Cell migration in cancer assay
Analysis of cell behaviors during metastasis
4DCELL DEVICE
READ-OUTS
Observation of cell motility and quantification of migration speed
STANDARD CULTURE LIMITATION
Cancer is considered a localized disease in its early stages. However, in the process of metastasis, cancer cells of a typical solid tumor must loosen their adhesion to neighboring cells and escape from the tissue of origin. Subsequently, cancer cells invade other tissues by degrading the extracellular matrix until they reach a blood or lymphatic vessel to enter circulation. Lastly, the cells reach the new environment whereby they will proliferate and ultimately reside. Those physiological constraints are difficult to reproduce in a standard cell culture system.
CELL MIGRATION IN CANCER ASSAY – BENEFITS
Using 4Dcell microchannels, natural constraints can be reproduced to mimic the trajectory of cancer cells spreading away from the primary tumor.
EXAMPLES
Motility of breast cancer cells in 3 µm channels (filled circles) and in 12 µm channels (empty squares) [2]
Motility can be measured and is better maintained in 12 µm channels.
Schematic representation of the motion of aggregated HeLa cells passing through a microcapillary to seed distant tumor [2]
Live and metastatic cells can be observed after passing through a constriction.