Creative Biolabs offers a specialized model development service that explores the intricate crosstalk between macrophages and cancer cells, particularly in enabling cancer cells to acquire stem-like properties and develop chemoresistance. This service leverages our expertise in cell culture and model construction to bridge the gap in understanding the dynamics between these cells. By establishing a coculture model between cancer organoids and macrophages, we aim to unravel the underlying mechanisms of their interactions and provide invaluable insights for potential clinical applications.

Fig.1 Targeting the macrophage-CCL5-SP1-AREG loop decreases cancer stem-like characteristics and chemoresistance in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.¹

Overview of Macrophage-Organoid Coculture Model

The macrophage-organoid coculture system is an advanced in vitro model that bridges the gap between conventional 2D cultures and in vivo animal models. It enables a physiologically relevant recapitulation of tissue-specific immune microenvironments by combining two key elements:

• Organoids: 3D mini-organs derived from tissue-specific stem cells or iPSCs, capable of self-organizing into structures that resemble native epithelial or organ tissues, such as the gut, liver, brain, or tumor tissues.
• Macrophages: Innate immune cells derived from peripheral blood monocytes, iPSCs, or immortalized lines (e.g., THP-1), exhibiting high plasticity and functional diversity. Their phenotypes can be polarized to mimic disease-relevant immune states.

This coculture model facilitates the study of:

• Immune-epithelial interactions under homeostatic and pathological conditions.
• Macrophage polarization and trafficking in tissue-like structures.
• Tissue damage, repair, and remodeling orchestrated by immune signals.
• Pathogen-host interactions within a controlled and traceable microenvironment.

Importantly, the platform supports both direct coculture (physical contact) and indirect coculture (e.g., transwell inserts), with optional integration of dynamic culture systems such as microfluidic chips for real-time monitoring of immune responses.

As a leading provider of customized cell-based models, Creative Biolabs is proud to offer a state-of-the-art macrophage-organoid coculture model development service. This service supports advanced preclinical research in immunology, oncology, infectious diseases, and regenerative medicine.

Macrophage-Organoid Coculture Model Development Service at Creative Biolabs

Creative Biolabs leverages expertise in organoid generation and myeloid cell biology to develop tailored macrophage-organoid coculture systems, customized to your research or drug screening needs. We offer an end-to-end development solution tailored to your experimental design and biological objectives.

• Model Design Consultation
  
  • Define organoid type (gut, brain, liver, etc.)
  • Choose macrophage source (primary, THP-1, iPSC-derived)
  • Select coculture format (direct, indirect, ALI, chip-based)
• Cell Preparation
  
  • Isolation and differentiation of macrophages
  • Expansion and maturation of organoids under controlled 3D culture
• Coculture Establishment
  
  • Integration of immune cells into the organoid environment
  • Monitoring of cell viability, integration, and immune surveillance
• Assay and Data Readouts
  
  • Cytokine and chemokine profiling (ELISA, multiplex assays)
  • Flow cytometry and immunofluorescence for polarization markers
  • RNA-seq, spatial transcriptomics, or single-cell analysis
  • Imaging of phagocytosis, migration, and tissue remodeling
• Report Delivery
  
  • Full documentation of methods, QC, and reproducible protocols
  • High-resolution images and interactive datasets
  • Optional follow-up experimental consultation

Furthermore, our macrophage therapeutic platform includes a set of matured technologies, such as flow cytometry, western blot, etc. Backed up by these advanced technologies and our competent research team, Creative Biolabs is confident in delivering customized macrophage-organoid coculture models with good performance in a shorter turnaround.

Advanced Technologies at Creative Biolabs

Key Advantages

Our macrophage-organoid coculture model provides a powerful tool for dissecting macrophage functionality and tissue-specific immune responses.

Related Products

With these services, our goal is to advance macrophage research and allow researchers to focus more on scientific discovery without worrying about model construction and optimization. Next, we are pleased to introduce our newly launched macrophage products. Our macrophage product lineup includes macrophage cell lines and macrophage function assay kits.

We firmly believe that by providing high-quality products and services, we can help researchers achieve more fruitful results in the field of macrophages. If you have any questions about our macrophage-organoid coculture model service or related products, please feel free to contact us!

Service Features

Publications

Fig.2 The CCL5/AREG loop enables communication between macrophages and PCCs.¹

Scientific Resources

Q & A

Q: What organoid types can you support? Does it include tumor organoids?

A: Our organoid platform supports organoids from multiple sources, including but not limited to:

• Intestinal organoids (for studying intestinal inflammation, microbial-immune interactions)
• Lung organoids (for respiratory disease modeling)
• Liver organoids (for inflammation, toxicology, and metabolism studies)
• Brain organoids (for neuroimmunology studies)
• Tumor organoids (PDOs) (derived from patients or cell lines)

Q: How long is the experimental cycle? Can you provide the experimental design and report?

A: The model development cycle depends on the organoid formation time, macrophage induction cycle, and co-culture duration. We provide the following support:

• Pre-technical communication and protocol development
• Experimental design document (with flowchart and timeline)
• Raw data records, pictures and graphs
• Full experimental report with methodology, analyzed data and conclusion recommendations

Q: Is it possible to construct individualized models?

A: Yes, we support personalized model construction using customer-provided samples, including:

• PBMC isolation and induction into autologous macrophages
• Patient tumor tissue to create PDO-like organoids
• Autoimmune cell-tumor co-culture to mimic individual immune response

Q: Are sample return shipments and long term storage services available?

A: Yes. We offer a variety of sample processing and follow-up services.

• Co-culture cell clusters (organoid + macrophage) frozen and sent back
• Sample return of molecular layer samples such as cell lysates, RNA, protein extracts, etc.
• Paraffin embedded, frozen section return

Customers have the flexibility to choose the sample processing method to support downstream experimental or publication needs.

References

1. Jiang, Shengwei, et al. "Macrophage-organoid co-culture model for identifying treatment strategies against macrophage-related gemcitabine resistance." Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research 42.1 (2023): 199. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13046-023-02756-4
2. Distributed under Open Access license CC BY 4.0, without modification.