Microwell-mediated cell spheroid formation and its applications

Abstract

There is a continuing attempt to study cell to cell interactions to control the growth, function, and differentiation of cells. One approach that can be utilized to assess representative cell to cell interactions is by using three-dimensional cell spheroids, also referred to as cell aggregates, generated by adhering cells to each other through cell-adhesion molecules such as cadherin. Compared with conventional two-dimensional cell monolayer, cell spheroid offers more realistic platform to predict cell behavior in high-throughput manner. To recapitulate the cell spheroid formation in vitro, microwell-mediated culture system has become a robust and efficient tool for providing uniform-sized spheroids. In this review, we first iterate the recent developments and innovations in microwell-mediated cell culture platform, focusing on formation and function of cell spheroids using various cells such as embryonic stem cells, postnatal stem cells, and somatic cells. Furthermore, the recent advancements in applications of cell spheroids generated from microwell-mediated culture system is covered in this article. The discussion on the integrative biology regarding cell to cell interaction and other biological events in cell spheroid is another focal point of this review.