Fibroblasts modulate epithelial cell behavior within the proliferative niche and differentiated cell zone within a human colonic crypt model

Colonic epithelium is situated above a layer of fibroblasts that provide supportive factors for stem cells at the crypt base and terminally differentiated cells in the upper crypt and luminal surface. To study the fibroblast-epithelial cell interactions, an in vitro crypt model was formed on a shaped collagen scaffold with primary epithelial cells growing above a layer of primary colonic fibroblasts. The crypts possessed a basal stem cell niche populated with proliferative cells and a differentiated, nondividing cell zone at the luminal crypt end. The presence of fibroblasts enhanced cell differentiation and accelerated the rate at which a high resistance epithelial cell layer formed relative to cultures without fibroblasts. The fibroblasts modulated cell proliferation within crypts increasing the number of crypts populated with proliferative cells but decreasing the total number of proliferative cells in each crypt. Bulk-RNA sequencing revealed 41 genes that were significantly upregula..., Data collection was conducted via transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) measurement with a chopstick electrode, fluorescence imaging, and bulk RNA-sequencing. Microsoft Excel, GraphPad Prism, FIJI, IMARIS, CellProfiler, STAR v2.7.7a, FastQC 0.11.9, RNA-SeQC 2.3.4, and RSeQC 4.0 were used to process these data., , # Data from: Fibroblasts modulate epithelial cell behavior within the proliferative niche and differentiated cell zone within a human colonic crypt model

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.tqjq2bw7b](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.tqjq2bw7b)

Data characterizing epithelial cell behavior while cultured within an in vitro model built on collagen hydrogel scaffolds with supportive primary fibroblasts underlying the epithelial monolayer. This work was conducted entirely at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA. The datasets enclosed herein represent the raw data collected for this original research.

For any questions, please contact Angelo Massaro ([e-mail]). The corresponding article has been published, on 15 December 2024:

Massaro Angelo , Villegas Novoa Cecilia , Wang Yuli , Allbritton Nancy L. Fibroblasts modulate epithelial cell behavior within the proliferative niche and differentiated cell zone within a human colonic crypt model. *Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechno...,