Supported gel slab scaffolds as a three-dimensional cell-based assay platform.

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Drug Discovery
• 3D Cell Culture

Background:

• Cell-based assays are crucial for drug discovery, but traditional monolayer cultures poorly predict in vivo responses.
• Three-dimensional (3D) culture platforms offer more representative cellular phenotypes but are difficult to integrate into existing workflows.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a novel scaffold-based 3D cell culture platform compatible with established drug discovery pipelines.
• To demonstrate the utility of supported gel slab (SGS) scaffolds for various cellular response assays.

Main Methods:

• Supported gel slab (SGS) scaffolds were fabricated using commercially available materials, an adhesive spray, and a laser cutter.
• SGS scaffolds were designed to fit standard well plates, ensuring compatibility with liquid handlers and analytical instrumentation.
• Demonstrated applications included confocal microscopy, cellular invasion assays, spheroid formation, and drug screening.

Main Results:

• SGS scaffolds successfully generated tissue-like environments with extracellular matrix-rich microenvironments.
• The scaffolds enabled quantification of cellular responses in both individual and stacked configurations.
• Demonstrated applications showed the potential for spatially resolved drug response mapping and chemotherapy identification.

Conclusions:

• Supported gel slab (SGS) scaffolds provide a versatile and compatible 3D cell culture solution for drug discovery.
• This platform enhances the predictive power of cell-based assays by mimicking in vivo conditions.
• SGS scaffolds facilitate the development of more effective drug candidates through improved screening capabilities.