Guide to Organoid Growth

AMSBIO has launched, at the ‘Frontiers in Stem Cells & Cancer' EMBL-EMBO Symposium, a guide that illustrates a variety of organoids grown from different tissues by leading international research groups using BME 2 reduced growth factor extracellular matrix that is available from the company.

Organoids are organ-like structures that can be formed by 3D cell culture and differentiation of stem cells or organ progenitors. Organoids are capable of recapitulating aspects of organ function in in vitro. The current research and therapeutic potential of organoids include organogenesis models, drug testing, tumour/disease models, toxicity screening, personalised medicine and regenerative medicine/organ replacement.

BME 2 reduced growth factor has been shown to work well for growing organoids, especially using techniques based on the LGR5 stem cell marker/Wnt signalling system, pioneered by Hans Clevers and co-workers.

The guide contains published protocols and citations for organoid growth, as well as examples of the following organoid models on BME 2: Human liver (courtesy of Dr Meritxell Huch, Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, UK ); Mouse liver (Dr Derk ten Berge, Erasmus MC Stem Cell Institute, Rotterdam, Netherlands); Human Colorectal Cancer (CRC) and Mouse Adenoma (Batlle Lab, IRB, Barcelona); Mouse Inestinal CRC model (Li Lab, NIMR, London, UK); Transgenic mouse intestine (Sansom Lab, Beatson Institute, Glasgow, UK); Oesophagus (Dr Mathew Garnet, Sanger Wellcome Trust Institute, Cambridge, UK); and mammary cancer (Dr Tuula Kallunki Danish Cancer Research Society Copenhagen, Denmark).