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Updated: Jan 28, 2026

Author Spotlight: Investigating Angiogenesis Through Challenges and Innovations in Assay Development
Published on: May 31, 2024
In Vitro Spheroid Sprouting Assay of Angiogenesis
Fatema Tuz Zahra1, Efrossini Choleva2, Md Sanaullah Sajib1
1Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Amarillo, TX, USA.
Abstract:
Angiogenesis is a well-coordinated physiological process that leads to new blood vessel formation. Physiologically, angiogenesis is more prominent during development and wound healing and its dysregulation drives or is related to several diseases, including cancer. The endothelial cells are the main regulators of the angiogenic process, and thus the angiogenic outcome is assessed based on the effect on endothelial cell functions. Several in vitro and in vivo techniques have been developed to assess the effect of various factors on angiogenesis. Compared to the in vivo techniques, the in vitro techniques are considered less physiologically relevant. This has been partially overcome by the development of 3-dimensional (3D) in vitro models, one of which is the spheroid assay or 3D sprouting assay that exploits the effect of the extracellular matrix to endothelial cell functions. This chapter focuses on the description of the spheroid assay and mentions the variations and potential applications this assay can have.
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