Introduction: Haemangioma is the most common tumour of infancy. Its biological behaviour is one of a benign nature and characterised by a typical biphasic growth pattern. After an initial proliferation during the child's first year of life an involution takes place and usually lasts until the first decade. The expression of cellular and extracellular markers as well as cytokines follows its biphasic growth. In-vitro models reported so far have provided new insights in the tumour's biology and have identified possible targets for pharmacological agents.
Purpose: Our study should enhance the functionality of current in-vitro models in establishing a suspension model of isolated proliferating haemangioma vascular endothelial cells (HVECs).
Material and methods: Tissue samples isolated from four haemangiomas (H1-H4) during the proliferation phase were cultivated in four different ways: H1 was cultivated in an MCDB-131 medium whereas for the H2 samples EGM2-MV medium was used. In the H3 series dispase enabled an immediate isolation of pure HVECs from the tissue sample which were cultivated under EMG2-MV medium. In the similarly cultivated H4 series an isolation of cultivated HVECs was enabled by the use of magnetic bead separation which finally led to a suspension model of isolated HVECs.
Results: In all four series HVECs were cultivated successfully. Depending on the selected medium different growth rates were observed. The use of dispase and the magnetic bead separation technique resulted in an isolation of cultivated HVECs which was documented in haematoxylin/eosin staining as well as under CD-31 immunohistochemistry.
Conclusions: Research on tumour-specific processes as well as possible pharmacological targets necessitates a stable in-vitro model of proliferating HVECs. For our purposes, the described suspension model of HVECs fulfills the requirements of further research on antiproliferation and anti-angiogenesis.