摘要
Metastasis is the leading cause of most cancer deaths, as opposed to dysregulated cell growth of the primary tumor. Molecular mechanisms of metastasis have been studied for decades and the findings have evolved our understanding of the progression of malignancy. However, most of the molecular mechanisms fail to address the causes of cancer and its evolutionary origin, demonstrating an inability to find a solution for complete cure of cancer. After being a neglected area of tumor biology for quite some time, recently several studies have focused on the impact of the tumor microenvironment on cancer growth. The importance of the tumor microenvironment is gradually gaining attention, particularly from the per- spective of biophysics. In vitro three-dimensional （3-D） metastatic models are an indispensable platform for investigating the tumor microenvironment, as they mimic the in vivo tumor tissue. In 3-D metastatic in vitro models, static factors such as the mechanical properties, biochemical factors, as well as dynamic factors such as cell-cell, cell-ECM interactions, and fluid shear stress can be studied quantitatively. With increasing focus on basic cancer research and drug development, the in vitro 3-D models offer unique advantages in fundamental and clinical biomedical studies.
Metastasis is the leading cause of most cancer deaths, as opposed to dysregulated cell growth of the primary tumor. Molecular mechanisms of metastasis have been studied for decades and the findings have evolved our understanding of the progression of malignancy. However, most of the molecular mechanisms fail to address the causes of cancer and its evolutionary origin, demonstrating an inability to find a solution for complete cure of cancer. After being a neglected area of tumor biology for quite some time, recently several studies have focused on the impact of the tumor microenvironment on cancer growth. The importance of the tumor microenvironment is gradually gaining attention, particularly from the per- spective of biophysics. In vitro three-dimensional （3-D） metastatic models are an indispensable platform for investigating the tumor microenvironment, as they mimic the in vivo tumor tissue. In 3-D metastatic in vitro models, static factors such as the mechanical properties, biochemical factors, as well as dynamic factors such as cell-cell, cell-ECM interactions, and fluid shear stress can be studied quantitatively. With increasing focus on basic cancer research and drug development, the in vitro 3-D models offer unique advantages in fundamental and clinical biomedical studies.
基金
supported by the National Basic Research Program of China(Grant No.2013CB837200)
the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.11474345)
the Beijing Natural Science Foundation,China(Grant No.7154221)
作者简介
These authors have equal conributions.Corresponding author. E-mail： liu@iphy.ac.cn
