Communications of the ACM
A 3D-Printed Brain Could Make It Easier to Find Cancer Treatments
Glioblastoma stem cells aggressively invade a model made of human brain cells and biomaterials.
Credit: Guohao Dai
Researchers at Northeastern University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have developed a technique to study glioblastoma brain tumors using a three-dimensionally (3D)-printed framework composed of human brain cells and biomaterials.
Guohao Dai's laboratory at Northeastern grew a 3D model to serve as brain tissue for tumor cells to infect using human brain blood vessel cells connected with various brain cells, and 3D-printed these components in stacks. The researchers inserted glioblastoma tumor stem cells in the middle of the framework, and used a laser to scan the sample and generate a 3D image of its cellular structure. The team employed this methodology to assess the effectiveness of the chemotherapy drug temozolomide.
Said Dai, "With our 3D glioblastoma model and imaging platform, you can see how the cells respond to radiation or chemotherapy very quickly."
From News@Northeastern
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Abstracts Copyright © 2020 SmithBucklin, Washington, DC, USA
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