Co-cultures

Abstract

In vitro cell culture still represents an important platform to link and to associate metabolic pathways with a living system although this technique has to be considered as a limited model. Without doubt, it remains extremely difficult to simulate and to transfer all features of the dynamically changing three-dimensional in vivo microenvironment to an in vitro cell culture system. Consequently, in vitro cell culture (e.g., single culture or dual co-culture) dramatically simplifies the vastly more complex in vivo situation. However, a variety of elementary data obtained from in vitro cell culture experiments provide a useful basis for potential in vivo extrapolation. Therefore, the following book chapter tries to highlight certain critically important parameters which significantly contribute to influence cellular behavior and development during in vitro co-culture of different cell populations. Moreover, the book chapter addresses exemplary functional assays to characterize distinct properties of a certain cell type during co-culture with other cells.