Gelatin-Based Soft-Tissue Sarcoma Organoids Recapitulate Patient Tumor Characteristics

Soft-tissue sarcoma (STS) is a rare and heterogeneous group of cancers with more than 100 histological subtypes, which makes biological understanding and therapeutic development particularly challenging. Patient-derived tumor organoid models have transformed cancer research by providing patient-representative preclinical platforms, yet their application in STS has been limited because of low establishment efficiency. To address this problem, a gelatin-based culture protocol was developed to enhance critical cellular processes, including mitochondrial function and cell adhesion, which are essential for organoid self-organization. Using this optimized system, patient-derived tumor organoids were successfully established from representative STS subtypes, such as dedifferentiated liposarcoma and leiomyosarcoma. These organoids retained the histopathological architecture and molecular characteristics of the original tumors and reflected subtype-specific oncogenic pathways, mitochondrial dynamics, and lipid metabolic signatures. Our established gelatin-based organoid culture system enables efficient establishment of patient-derived organoids from representative STS subtypes, faithfully preserving their histopathological and molecular characteristics. These models recapitulate subtype-specific oncogenic pathways, mitochondrial dynamics, and lipid metabolic signatures, providing a robust and clinically relevant preclinical platform for investigating sarcoma biology and developing personalized therapeutic strategies.