Three-dimensional reconstructed bone marrow matrix culture improves the viability of primary myeloma cells in-vitro via a STAT3-dependent mechanism

Huang, Y.-H., Almowaled, M., Li, J., Venner, C., Sandhu, I., Peters, A., Lavasanifar, A. and Lai, R. (2021) Three-dimensional reconstructed bone marrow matrix culture improves the viability of primary myeloma cells in-vitro via a STAT3-dependent mechanism. Current Issues in Molecular Biology, 43(1), pp. 313-323. (doi: 10.3390/cimb43010026) (PMID:34201211)

Abstract

Primary myeloma (PM) cells are short-lived in conventional culture, which limited their usefulness as a study model. Here, we evaluated if three-dimensional (3D) culture can significantly prolong the longevity of PM cells in-vitro. We employed a previously established 3D model for culture of bone marrow mononuclear cells isolated from 15 patients. We assessed the proportion of PM cells, viability and proliferation using CD38 staining, trypan blue exclusion assays and carboxy fluorescein succinimidyl ester (CFSE) staining, respectively. We observed significantly more CD38+ viable cells in 3D than in conventional culture (65% vs. 25%, p = 0.006) on day 3. CFSE staining showed no significant difference in cell proliferation between the two culture systems. Moreover, we found that PM cells in 3D culture are more STAT3 active by measure of pSTAT3 staining (66% vs. 10%, p = 0.008). Treatment of IL6, a STAT3 activator significantly increased CD38+ cell viability (41% to 68%, p = 0.021). In comparison, inhibition of STAT3 with Stattic significantly decreased PM cell viability in 3D culture (38% to 17% p = 0.010). Neither IL6 nor Stattic affected the PM cell viability in conventional culture. This study suggests that 3D culture can significantly improve the longevity of PM cells in-vitro, and STAT3 activation can further improve their viability.

• Item Type: Articles
• Keywords: 3D culture, primary myeloma cells, STAT3.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Almowaled, Meaad Saeed J

Creator Roles

Almowaled, M.: Methodology

• Authors: Huang, Y.-H., Almowaled, M., Li, J., Venner, C., Sandhu, I., Peters, A., Lavasanifar, A., and Lai, R.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Cancer Sciences
• Journal Name: Current Issues in Molecular Biology
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 1467-3037
• ISSN (Online): 1467-3045
• Published Online: 08 June 2021
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2021 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Current Issues in Molecular Biology 43(1): 313-323
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License