An official website of the United States government
Abstract Cancer nanomedicines predominately rely on transport processes controlled by tumor‐associated endothelial cells to deliver therapeutic and diagnostic payloads into solid tumors. While the dominant role of this class of endothelial cells for nanoparticle transport and tumor delivery is established in animal models, the translational potential in human cells needs exploration. Using primary human breast cancer as a model, the differential interactions of normal and tumor‐associated endothelial cells with clinically relevant nanomedicine formulations are explored and quantified. Primary human breast cancer‐associated endothelial cells exhibit up to ≈2 times higher nanoparticle uptake than normal human mammary microvascular endothelial cells. Super‐resolution imaging studies reveal a significantly higher intracellular vesicle number for tumor‐associated endothelial cells, indicating a substantial increase in cellular transport activities. RNA sequencing and gene expression analysis indicate the upregulation of transport‐related genes, especially motor protein genes, in tumor‐associated endothelial cells. Collectively, the results demonstrate that primary human breast cancer‐associated endothelial cells exhibit enhanced interactions with nanomedicines, suggesting a potentially significant role for these cells in nanoparticle tumor delivery in human patients. Engineering nanoparticles that leverage the translational potential of tumor‐associated endothelial cell‐mediated transport into human solid tumors may lead to the development of safer and more effective clinical cancer nanomedicines.
more »
« less
This content will become publicly available on February 25, 2026
Advances in microfluidic platforms for tumor cell phenotyping: from bench to bedside
Heterogeneities among tumor cells significantly contribute towards cancer progression and therapeutic inefficiency. Herein, we discuss recent microfluidic platforms for sorting and profiling of tumor cells for prognostics and personalized therapies.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1935792
- PAR ID:
- 10591838
- Publisher / Repository:
- RSC
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Lab on a Chip
- Volume:
- 25
- Issue:
- 5
- ISSN:
- 1473-0197
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 856 to 883
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
Abstract Colorectal cancer (CRC) cells display remarkable adaptability, orchestrating metabolic changes that confer growth advantages, pro‐tumor microenvironment, and therapeutic resistance. One such metabolic change occurs in glutamine metabolism. Colorectal tumors with high glutaminase (GLS) expression exhibited reduced T cell infiltration and cytotoxicity, leading to poor clinical outcomes. However, depletion of GLS in CRC cells has minimal effect on tumor growth in immunocompromised mice. By contrast, remarkable inhibition of tumor growth is observed in immunocompetent mice when GLS is knocked down. It is found that GLS knockdown in CRC cells enhanced the cytotoxicity of tumor‐specific T cells. Furthermore, the single‐cell flux estimation analysis (scFEA) of glutamine metabolism revealed that glutamate‐to‐glutathione (Glu‐GSH) flux, downstream of GLS, rather than Glu‐to‐2‐oxoglutarate flux plays a key role in regulating the immune response of CRC cells in the tumor. Mechanistically, inhibition of the Glu‐GSH flux activated reactive oxygen species (ROS)‐related signaling pathways in tumor cells, thereby increasing the tumor immunogenicity by promoting the activity of the immunoproteasome. The combinatorial therapy of Glu‐GSH flux inhibitor and anti‐PD‐1 antibody exhibited a superior tumor growth inhibitory effect compared to either monotherapy. Taken together, the study provides the first evidence pointing to Glu‐GSH flux as a potential therapeutic target for CRC immunotherapy.more » « less
-
Abstract Colorectal cancer, a significant cause of cancer-related mortality, often exhibits drug resistance, highlighting the need for improved tumor models to advance personalized drug testing and precision therapy. We generated organoids from primary colorectal cancer cells cultured through the conditional reprogramming technique, establishing a framework to perform short-term drug testing studies on patient-derived cells. To model interactions with stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment, we combined cancer cell organoids with carcinoma-associated fibroblasts, a cell type implicated in disease progression and drug resistance. Our organotypic models revealed that carcinoma-associated fibroblasts promote cancer cell proliferation and stemness primarily through hepatocyte growth factor–MET paracrine signaling and activation of cyclin-dependent kinases. Disrupting these tumor–stromal interactions reduced organoid size while limiting oncogenic signals and cancer stemness. Leveraging this tumor model, we identified effective drug combinations targeting colorectal cancer cells and their tumorigenic activities. Our study highlights a path to incorporate patient-derived cells and tumor–stromal interactions into a drug testing workflow that could identify effective therapies for individual patients.more » « less
-
Abstract Tumors develop in a complex physical, biochemical, and cellular milieu, referred to as the tumor microenvironment. Of special interest is the set of immune cells that reciprocally interact with the tumor, the tumor-immune microenvironment (TIME). The diversity of cell types and cell–cell interactions in the TIME has led researchers to apply concepts from ecology to describe the dynamics. However, while tumor cells are known to induce immune cells to switch from anti-tumor to pro-tumor phenotypes, this type of ecological interaction has been largely overlooked. To address this gap in cancer modeling, we develop a minimal, ecological model of the TIME with immune cell conversion, to highlight this important interaction and explore its consequences. A key finding is that immune conversion increases the range of parameters supporting a co-existence phase in which the immune system and the tumor reach a stalemate. Our results suggest that further investigation of the consequences of immune cell conversion, using detailed, data-driven models, will be critical for greater understanding of TIME dynamics.more » « less
-
Abstract Recent years have seen a tremendous growth of interest in understanding the role that the adaptive immune system could play in interdicting tumor progression. In this context, it has been shown that the density of adaptive immune cells inside a solid tumor serves as a favorable prognostic marker across different types of cancer. The exact mechanisms underlying the degree of immune cell infiltration is largely unknown. Here, we quantify the temporal dynamics of the density profile of activated immune cells around a solid tumor spheroid. We propose a computational model incorporating immune cells with active, persistent movement and a proliferation rate that depends on the presence of cancer cells, and show that the model able to reproduce semi-quantitatively the experimentally measured infiltration profile. Studying the density distribution of immune cells inside a solid tumor can help us better understand immune trafficking in the tumor micro-environment, hopefully leading towards novel immunotherapeutic strategies.more » « less
