Customized 3D Co-culture Models of Intestinal Inflammation

Investigations of intestinal immune phenomena in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are often conducted using Caco-2 cells and 2D cell co-culture systems. 3D cell culture models of intestinal inflammation are widely used in the early stages of IBD drug development because intestinal cells interact with their surroundings in three dimensions. They can better represent the multilayered structure of the intestine, promoting cell-cell and cell-ECM interactions that better resemble native tissues. Based on the approach, 3D cell culture models can generally be divided into two main categories:

• Scaffold-based approaches, using hydrogels or structural scaffolds, such as porous silk, collagen, and Poly-lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA).
• Scaffold-free approaches, using free-floating cell aggregates, often called spheroids.

Fig. 1. A co-culture of Caco-2 and phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-differentiated THP-1 cells. (Ferreira et al., 2024)

Customized 3D In Vitro Intestinal Model Development

At Ace Therapeutics, we develop advanced 3D co-culture models of intestinal inflammation. These include models based on scaffolds or hydrogels and those based on decellularized tissue models. We work closely with clients to develop customized 3D cell culture models that meet their functional, cost, and throughput requirements.

• A co-culture system consisting of human blood monocyte-derived macrophages and DCs, and Caco-2 cells.
• A co-culture system consisting of macrophage-derived cell line (differentiated THP-1) and dendritic-like cells (MUTZ-3), and Caco-2 cells.
• A co-culture system consisting of Caco-2/HT29 epithelial cells and primary human fibroblasts within tube-like silk scaffolds or hydrogel scaffolds.
• A co-culture of Caco-2 and phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-differentiated THP-1 cells.
• A leaky gut of Caco-2, MUTZ-3, and THP-1 cells to mimic human IBD
• An in vitro triple co-culture intestinal model consisting of an intestinal epithelial layer (Caco-2/HT29-MTX cells) and immunocompetent cells.

Accelerate Your IBD Drug Discovery Efforts

We also help clients conduct preclinical IBD studies through these 3D co-culture models of intestinal inflammation. Our state-of-the-art imaging systems can meet the challenging demands of 3D acquisition and analysis without compromising throughput and data quality, better enabling your scientific research.

• Evaluate the correlation between drug permeation and absorption.
• Evaluate drug absorption and functional activity.
• Externally simulate system perturbation and investigate potential mechanisms of intestinal barrier disease.
• Evaluate the potential function of drugs and active substances.
• Investigate interactions between xenobiotics, nanoparticles (NPs) and the inflamed intestinal barrier.

As a leading provider of IBD drug discovery solutions, Ace Therapeutics has considerable expertise in the generation and analysis of 3D in vitro intestinal models. We work closely with clients to best understand their research objectives. If you are interested in learning more, please contact us.