Project Description

Giant cell tumor of bone (GCTB) is a benign tumor which occurs at the ends of long bones amongst the most productive age group (20-40 years) prevalently in India and China. GCTB has a relatively high recurrence rate, with metastases occurring in 1- 9% of patients with GCTB. Testing of anti-tumor drugs before clinical trials have been conducted on animal models, but they have drawbacks such as inability to recapitulate tissue environments, superficial vascularization of host tumors, and lack of stroma-tumor interactions. Hence, there is a significant need for a suitable in vitro model on which drugs can be tested upon. This proposal aims to develop in vitro tissue engineered models of GCTB, which is advantageous in mimicking the tumor microenvironment. Three-dimensional scaffold containing carboxymethyl cellulose and collagen, and hydroxyapatite, would be fabricated using freeze-drying method. The fabricated scaffold would be tested for its chemical, biological and mechanical properties for its use as in vitro model. Primary cell culture obtained from tissue samples of GCTB patients will be introduced into the fabricated scaffolds to obtain in vitro model. This in vitro tissue engineered model can be used for studying pathogenesis of tumor and for screening new drugs against GCTB.