Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 19, 2026
3D Microtissues for Injectable Regenerative Therapy and High-throughput Drug Screening
Published on: October 4, 2017
Fabrication of In Vitro Cancer Microtissue Array on Fibroblast-Layered Nanofibrous Membrane by Inkjet Printing
Tae-Min Park1, Donggu Kang2, Ilho Jang3
1Research Institute, Femtobiomed Co., Ltd., 700, Pangyo-ro, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 13516, Korea. taemin333@gmail.com.
Abstract:
In general, a drug candidate is evaluated using 2D-cultured cancer cells followed by an animal model. Despite successful preclinical testing, however, most drugs that enter human clinical trials fail. The high failure rates are mainly caused by incompatibility between the responses of the current models and humans. Here, we fabricated a cancer microtissue array in a multi-well format that exhibits heterogeneous and batch-to-batch structure by continuous deposition of collagen-suspended Hela cells on a fibroblast-layered nanofibrous membrane via inkjet printing. Expression of both Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) and Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) was higher in cancer microtissues than in fibroblast-free microtissues. The fabricated microtissues were treated with an anticancer drug, and high drug resistance to doxorubicin occurred in cancer microtissues but not in fibroblast-free microtissues. These results introduce an inkjet printing fabrication method for cancer microtissue arrays, which can be used for various applications such as early drug screening and gradual 3D cancer studies.
Insights
This study presents a novel inkjet printing method for creating 3D cancer microtissues. These advanced models show higher drug resistance, improving cancer drug screening and research.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Cancer Research
- Drug Discovery
Background:
- Current 2D cell cultures and animal models often fail to predict human responses to cancer drugs.
- High failure rates in clinical trials highlight the need for more accurate preclinical models.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an inkjet printing method for fabricating heterogeneous 3D cancer microtissue arrays.
- To evaluate the utility of these microtissues for drug screening and 3D cancer studies.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of cancer microtissues using inkjet printing of collagen-suspended Hela cells onto a fibroblast-layered nanofibrous membrane.
- Analysis of Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) and Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) expression.
- Assessment of drug resistance to doxorubicin in the fabricated microtissues.
Main Results:
- Inkjet printing successfully created heterogeneous cancer microtissue arrays.
- Cancer microtissues exhibited higher MMP2 and MMP9 expression compared to controls.
- Microtissues demonstrated significant drug resistance to doxorubicin, unlike simpler models.
Conclusions:
- Inkjet printing offers a viable method for creating complex 3D cancer microtissues.
- These microtissues show promise as improved models for early cancer drug screening.
- The platform supports advanced studies into 3D cancer biology and drug response.
