3D cell culture model: From ground experiment to microgravity study

Chiyuan Ma; Xianglong Duan; Xiaohua Lei

doi:10.3389/fbioe.2023.1136583

3D cell culture model: From ground experiment to microgravity study

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2023 Mar 24:11:1136583. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2023.1136583. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Chiyuan Ma^{1

2}, Xianglong Duan^{2

3}, Xiaohua Lei¹

Affiliations

¹ Center for Energy Metabolism and Reproduction, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
² Institute of Medical Research, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China.
³ Second Department of General Surgery, Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital, Xi'an, China.

Abstract

Microgravity has been shown to induce many changes in cell growth and differentiation due to offloading the gravitational strain normally exerted on cells. Although many studies have used two-dimensional (2D) cell culture systems to investigate the effects of microgravity on cell growth, three-dimensional (3D) culture scaffolds can offer more direct indications of the modified cell response to microgravity-related dysregulations compared to 2D culture methods. Thus, knowledge of 3D cell culture is essential for better understanding the in vivo tissue function and physiological response under microgravity conditions. This review discusses the advances in 2D and 3D cell culture studies, particularly emphasizing the role of hydrogels, which can provide cells with a mimic in vivo environment to collect a more natural response. We also summarized recent studies about cell growth and differentiation under real microgravity or simulated microgravity conditions using ground-based equipment. Finally, we anticipate that hydrogel-based 3D culture models will play an essential role in constructing organoids, discovering the causes of microgravity-dependent molecular and cellular changes, improving space tissue regeneration, and developing innovative therapeutic strategies. Future research into the 3D culture in microgravity conditions could lead to valuable therapeutic applications in health and pharmaceuticals.

Keywords: 3D culture; dysfunction and regeneration; hydrogel; microgravity; tissue formation.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2021YFA0719303), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32271284), the Key Research and Development Program of Shaanxi (Program No. 2020GXLH-Y-019, 2022KXJ-141), the China Manned Space Flight Technology Project Chinese Space Station (YYWT-0901-EXP-15) and the Innovation Capability Support Program of Shaanxi (Program No. 2019GHJD-14, 2021TD-40).