Semiautomatic growth analysis of multicellular tumor spheroids

Multicellular tumor spheroids (MCTS) are routinely employed as three-dimensional in vitro models to study tumor biology. Cultivation of MCTS in spinner flasks provides better growing conditions, especially with regard to the availability of nutrients and oxygen, when compared with microtiter plates. The main endpoint of drug response experiments is spheroid size. It is common practice to analyze spheroid size manually with a microscope and an ocular micrometer. This requires removal of some spheroids from the flask, which entails major limitations such as loss of MCTS and the risk of contamination. With this new approach, the authors present an efficient and highly reproducible method to analyze the size of complete MCTS populations in culture containers with transparent, flat bottoms. MCTS sediments are digitally scanned and spheroid volumes are calculated by computerized image analysis. The equipment includes regular office hardware (personal computer, flatbed scanner) and software (Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Excel, ImageJ). The accuracy and precision of the method were tested using industrial precision steel beads with known diameter. In summary, in comparison with other methods, this approach provides benefits in terms of semiautomation, noninvasiveness, and low costs.