There is described an isolated 3-dimensional liver spheroid wherein said spheroid has: increased ATP content as compared to a 3-dimensional liver spheroid cultured in Complete William's E medium alone; the same or increased activity of cytochrome P450 1A1 and cytochrome P450 1B1 as compared to a 3-dimensional liver spheroid cultured in Complete William's E medium alone; and increased albumin secretion as compared to a 3-dimensional liver spheroid cultured in William's E medium alone.

Provided are a method for producing a cell tissue, including a culturing step of culturing cells capable of serving as a feeder inside opening pores and communicating pores of a porous film having a plurality of the opening pores provided on a surface thereof and the communicating pores communicating mutually adjacent opening pores with one another; and a porous film including a plurality of opening pores provided on a surface thereof and communicating pores communicating mutually adjacent opening pores with one another.

A device for culturing a liver tissue has a culture chamber to which at least two flow channels, which are at least for introducing and discharging a culture medium, are connected. A gel which serves as a cell scaffold material is housed in the culture chamber. A co-culture system containing an endothelial cell-derived cell, a hepatocyte-derived cell and a mesenchymal cell is co-cultured on the gel in such a way that the co-culture system has a tubular structure.

A cell culturing device has: a first culture chamber; a first introduction flow channel and a first discharge flow channel which are connected to the first culture chamber; a second culture chamber connected to a halfway part of the first introduction flow channel via a first porous membrane; and a second introduction flow channel and a second discharge flow channel which are connected to the second culture chamber. The first discharge flow channel is connected to the first culture chamber via a second porous membrane. The first introduction flow channel has a liquid collecting part between the first culture chamber and the second culture chamber.

A cell culture platform for modeling metastatic cancer is disclosed. The platform comprises one or more cell culture vessels comprising a plurality of compartments. Each compartment houses a substrate include a decellularized tissue-specific extracellular matrix derived from tissue of a different anatomical region. Each tissue-specific extracellular matrix comprises a homogenous mixture of macromolecule fragments including collagen, elastin, and glycosaminoglycan. A kit for culturing cells in biomimetic environments is also disclosed. The kit comprises a plurality of substrate precursors and at least one reagent. Each substrate precursor comprises a decellularized tissue-specific extracellular matrix derived from tissue of a different anatomical region. The tissue-specific extracellular matrix comprises a homogenous mixture of macromolecule fragments including collagen, elastin, and glycosaminoglycan. The reagent is configured to configured to convert each substrate precursor into a substrate adapted for culturing cells thereon. Methods of assessing a tumor-associated response of a cancer colony are also disclosed herein.

A cell culturing device has: a first culture chamber; a first introduction flow channel and a first discharge flow channel which are connected to the first culture chamber; a second culture chamber connected to a halfway part of the first introduction flow channel via a first porous membrane; and a second introduction flow channel and a second discharge flow channel which are connected to the second culture chamber. The first discharge flow channel is connected to the first culture chamber via a second porous membrane. The first introduction flow channel has a liquid collecting part between the first culture chamber and the second culture chamber.

Methods are provided for producing differentiated cells from stem cells, including producing hepatocytes. Compositions thereof are also provided, as are methods of treating a liver disorder.

There is described an isolated 3-dimensional liver spheroid wherein said spheroid has: increased ATP content as compared to a 3-dimensional liver spheroid cultured in Complete William's E medium alone; the same or increased activity of cytochrome P450 1A1 and cytochrome P450 1B1 as compared to a 3-dimensional liver spheroid cultured in Complete William's E medium alone; and increased albumin secretion as compared to a 3-dimensional liver spheroid cultured in William's E medium alone.

The present disclosure provides a method of producing and expanding human pancreas progenitor cells using, for example, iPSC derived cells and a human feeder cell conditioned medium. In one embodiment, cardiac mesenchyme cells are employed as feeder cells and those cells secrete growth factors, such as one or more of FGF10, KGF, or EGF, that promote pancreatic bud formation and expansion during development. In one embodiment, feeder cells are isolated from human stem cells, e.g., a human iPS-derived cardiac cells, and used to condition media and promote the growth and proliferation of iPSc derived pancreatic progenitor cells (in a feeder-free system).

A method of making a cardiac construct is carried out by depositing a mixture comprising live mammalian cardiac cells (e.g., individual cells, organoids, or spheroids), fibrinogen, gelatin, and water on a support to form an intermediate cardiac construct; optionally co-depositing a structural support material (e.g., polycaprolactone) with the mixture in a configuration that supports the intermediate construct; and then contacting thrombin to the construct in an amount effective to cross-link the fibrinogen and produce a cardiac construct comprised of live cardiac cells that together spontaneously beat in a fibrin hydrogel. Constructs made and methods of using the same are also described.