Angiogenesis analysis by in vitro coculture assays in transwell chambers in ovarian cancer

Abstract

Angiogenesis is an important biological process in tumor growth and metastasis of tumor cells, and it has been associated with poor clinical outcomes in ovarian cancer. In vitro assays are useful tools for understanding the complex mechanisms of angiogenesis under a variety of conditions. Capillary-like formation and transwell migration assays are two of the most common techniques used in angiogenesis research. Here, we show an easy coculture model to study the role of microRNAs on angiogenesis that combines tube formation and cell migration assays. Recently, we reported that miR-204 is repressed in breast cancer and restoration in cancer cell lines results in angiogenesis inhibition. Here, we restored the expression of miR-204 by transfection of precursor molecule in the tumorigenic SKOV3 ovarian cancer cell line, and analyzed the effects in cell migration, invasion, and tube formation of endothelial cells using matrigel-coated transwell chambers.