Epithelial-mesenchymal crosstalk influences cellular behavior in a 3D alveolus-fibroblast model system.

ABSTRACT: Interactions between lung epithelium and interstitial fibroblasts are increasingly recognized as playing a major role in the progression of several lung pathologies, including cancer. Three-dimensional in vitro co-culture systems offer tissue-relevant platforms to study the signaling interplay between diseased and healthy cell types. Such systems provide a controlled environment in which to probe the mechanisms involved in epithelial-mesenchymal crosstalk. To recapitulate the native alveolar tissue architecture, we employed a cyst templating technique to culture alveolar epithelial cells on photodegradable microspheres and subsequently encapsulated the cell-laden spheres within poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG) hydrogels containing dispersed pulmonary fibroblasts. A fibroblast cell line (CCL-21

SUBMITTER: Lewis KJR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5748390 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature