Generation of Hepatic Tissue Structures Using Multicellular Spheroid Culture

Abstract

The hepatic functions of the hepatocytes in multicellular spheroid (MCS) are lower than those in the liver. One of the causes is that conventional hepatic MCSs do not reproduce liver-specific microstructures such as hepatic cord. It is necessary to design the inner structure of hepatic MCSs mimicking a structural feature of hepatic cord to represent further hepatic functions. Here we introduce a unique method to engineer the microarchitectures in the MCSs by formation of void spaces or filling of extracellular matrices (ECMs).