How Prostate Cancer Cells Change Their Environment
Author Information
Author(s): Harjanto Dewi, Joseph S. Zaman, Muhammad H.
Primary Institution: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
Hypothesis
Do different prostate cancer cell lines remodel their extracellular matrix differently based on their invasiveness and collagen concentration?
Conclusion
Prostate cancer cells remodel their extracellular matrix in distinct ways that depend on both the initial matrix properties and their invasiveness.
Supporting Evidence
- Collagen gels without cells showed higher stiffness and smaller pore sizes with increased collagen concentration.
- LNCaP and DU-145 cells remodeled their environment differently, with LNCaP cells favoring lower collagen content.
- Inhibition of matrix proteases reduced fibril fractions in high concentration gels, supporting the hypothesis of MMP involvement in remodeling.
Takeaway
This study shows that prostate cancer cells change the structure of their surrounding environment differently, depending on how aggressive they are and how much collagen is present.
Methodology
The study used confocal reflection microscopy and quantitative image analysis to monitor structural changes in collagen gels seeded with prostate cancer cells over one week.
Limitations
The study only compared two prostate cancer cell lines and did not explore a broader range of cancer types.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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