Summary
Published in Scientific Reports (2020), this peer-reviewed study used 3D Petri Dish® micro-molds to form scaffold-free 3D microtissues. Full citation: Kosheleva, Nastasia V., et al. Cell spheroid fusion: beyond liquid drops model
Cell spheroid fusion: beyond liquid drops model
Research Overview
Biological self-assembly underlies development, tissue regeneration, and the maturation of bioprinted constructs, and cell spheroids are the standard model for studying it. Existing approaches treat spheroid fusion as analogous to coalescing liquid droplets, ignoring the complex structural properties of the aggregates.
This study analyzed fusion in relation to the structure and mechanical properties of spheroids from two human somatic cell types — mesenchymal stem cells from the limbal eye stroma and epithelial cells from the retinal pigment epithelium — using a nanoindentation protocol for mechanical measurements. The results departed from the liquid-drop model: fusion was faster for the epithelial spheroids despite their lower apparent surface tension.
Key Discoveries
- Spheroid fusion analyzed against structural and mechanical properties, not just liquid-drop analogy
- Nanoindentation used to measure spheroid mechanics for limbal MSCs and RPE epithelial cells
- Epithelial spheroids fused faster despite lower apparent surface tension — contradicting the liquid-drop model
