Disease-related biomarkers as experimental endpoints in 3D skin culture models.

The success of in vitro 3D models in either recapitulating the normal tissue physiology or altered physiology or disease condition depends upon the identification and/or quantification of relevant biomarkers that confirm the functionality of these models. Various skin disorders, such as psoriasis, photoaging, vitiligo, etc., and cancers like squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma, etc. have been replicated via organotypic models. The disease biomarkers expressed by such cell cultures are quantified and compared with the biomarkers expressed in cultures depicting the normal tissue physiology, to identify the most prominent variations in their expression. This may also indicate the stage or reversal of these conditions upon treatment with relevant therapeutics. This review article presents an overview of the important biomarkers that have been identified in in-vitro 3D models of skin diseases as endpoints for validating the functionality of these models.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10616-023-00574-2.