Development of a tumour model for preclinical tests of targeted anticancer drug formulations based on Caco-2 cells grown on the chicken embryos chorioallantoic membrane (CAM)

摘要

The aim of the current work was to develop a tumour model which is complex enough to allow the investigation of active targeting strategies of nanocarriers for cancer therapy. In vitro cell culture models cannot mimic the natural tumour microenvironment and the access via the blood stream, and animal experiments are not feasible for screening of several formulations. The chicken embryos chorioallantoic membrane was used as basis to culture Caco-2 cells until the development of adenocarcinomas. The tumour tissue was qualitatively analyzed by histological sections with hematoxylin staining and quantified by flow cytometer measurement following an EpCAM antibody staining. Within only 12 days after experimental start by egg breeding, tumours of several millimeters in size could have been grown. In histological sections typical pattern of growth for colon carcinoma tumors were observable. Staining with EpCAM antibody allowed distinguishing between Caco-2 and CAM cells in flow cytometer measurement, which offers an easy method for quantification. The developed model showed encouraging results suggesting the CAM model with cultivated Caco-2 tumour as a useful tool in drug delivery research with good practicability in laboratory scale.