Xenoline-polarized macrophages as an alternative in vitro model of tumor-associated macrophages in glioblastoma.

ABSTRACT: Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are the most abundant non-cancerous cell type in glioblastoma (GBM) and heavily influence GBM biology, contributing to tumor progression, therapeutic resistance, immune evasion, and neovascularization. Current in vitro models that utilize IL-4/IL-13 stimulation fail to capture the transcriptional and functional heterogeneity of TAMs observed in vivo. In this study, we utilize a serum-free indirect co-culture model with patient-derived xenolines to polarize primary human macrophages and characterize their molecular and functional phenotypes. We demonstrate that xenoline-polarized macrophages diverge from classical M1/M2 states and instead adopt transcriptional signatures reflective of TAM subsets identified from patients. Notably, macrophages polarized wi

SUBMITTER: Alrefai H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12205497 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature