Author(s)

N. SAITO, H. ADACHI, H. TANAKA, S. NAKATA, N. KAWADA & K. YOSHIZATO

Abstract

Cell culture methodology has been utilized as a powerful tool to characterize cells with a presupposition that the cells in culture faithfully reproduce their in vivo phenotypes. However, it is generally recognized that the cells cultured currently by the most commonly utilized two-dimensional (2D) monolayer technology exhibit different phenotypes from those in living tissues. Cultivation of cells in three-dimensional (3D) lattices of collagen fibrils (collagen gel culture) has been thought to overcome the shortages of 2D cell culture such that the cells behave as in vivo by interacting with not only nearby other cells but also by surrounding extracellular matrices. A remarkable outcome of studies on collagen gel culture was a demonstration of contractile nature of the cells. One of the not-fully appreciated issues about the 3D cell culture is the effect of fluid flow through the collagen gels on cells’ phenotypes. In this review, we make a short overview of historical and current studies of the collagen gel culture from a viewpoint of ‘how we can more correctly extract the cell-related phenomena in living tissues/organs by in vitro culture technology, placing an emphasis on the importance of stimuli caused by flow of cell culture medium.’

Keywords

Collagen gel culture, connective tissue modeling, ECM compositions, gel contraction, interstitial fluid flow, tensile strength.