Our technology platform for translational cancer research, anti-cancer drug discovery, and drug development, uses a polymer-based electro-spun fiber-inspired smart scaffold (FiSS) technology that promotes aggregation of tumor cells resulting in tumor-like organoids (tumoroids)

FiSS-CSC

Tumoroids grow as a “bead on a rope” culturable up to 20 days or longer becoming >500 µm in size
Easy dislodgement of tumoroids without any need for trypsinization for further downstream analysis
These tumoroids undergo an Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition (EMT) in 3 days; a process by which epithelial cells lose their cell polarity and cell-cell adhesion and gain migratory and invasive properties to become mesenchymal stem cells
Drug response profile of tumoroids is similar to in vivo tumors, thereby providing the opportunity of developing a individualized Prescription Enhancement (iPEN) test platform that enables selecting right cancer therapy for an individual patient

Assay for CSC drug discovery uses a platform technology, which has several advantages:

Tumoroids develop from tumor cell lines or co-cultures of tumor, fibroblast and endothelial cells
Faster (2X) growth rate of tumoroids vs other 3D systems
Culture wells are suitable for direct screening without transfer and compatible with standard assays: CellTiterGlo, PrestoBlue, WST
Available in both 96- and 384-well formats
Validated in diverse tumor models, including lung, breast, prostate and ovarian cancers and sarcomas
Tumoroids/CSCs express relevant clinical markers
Adaptable to support patient biopsy cells. TGN’s CSC-based personalized cancer treatment platform will involve culturing tumor biopsy cells from a patient on our FiSS-CSC discs to determine the most effective and safe anti-cancer drug(s) for that patient