A Novel Human Leiomyoma Tissue Derived Matrix for Cell Culture Studies

The composition of the matrix molecules is important in in vitro cell culture experiments of e.g. human cancer invasion and vessel formation. Currently, the mouse Engelbreth-Holm-Swarm (EHS) sarcoma -derived products, such as Matrigel®, are the most commonly used tumor microenvironment mimicking (TMEM) matrices for experimental studies. However, since Matrigel® is non-human in origin, its molecular composition does not accurately simulate human TMEM and we expect myogel to be more natural environment for human cancer cells. The environment may have crucial impact on cell behavior and gene expression. The gene expression of the cells growing on top of myogel compared to those growing on top of plastic were sought for potential differencies. 90 000 HSC-3 cells were cultured in 6-well plates (three replicates) with and without myogel coating. The RNA samples were pooled and the changes in gene expressions were analyzed.