Studying Monocyte-Myofibroblast Immunomodulation in a 3D Co-culture System

Simple and reproducible 3D cell culture systems that mimic biological interactions within physiological tissues (biomimetics) can provide unique insight for scientific inquiries compared to 2D cell cultures. Fibroblast-populated collagen lattices (FPCLs) are commonly used for mimicking physiological collagen matrices, potentiating biomechanical stresses on embedded fibroblasts. Here, we describe a novel 3D co-culture model that incorporates human Tenon's capsule fibroblasts embedded in FPCLs co-cultured with THP-1 monocytes suspended in culture media. This method can be used for the assessment of cell-cell interactions in various stages of the wound healing process and can facilitate various types of immune cells in co-culture. This system can also be used to study pharmacological agents that may eventually improve clinical outcomes in patients affected by inflammatory disorders.