Open Access
ARTICLE
Dynamics along the epithelial-cancer biointerface: Hidden system complexities
IVANA PAJIC-LIJAKOVIC*, MILAN MILIVOJEVIC
Faculty of Technology and Metallurgy, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
* Corresponding Author: Ivana Pajic-Lijakovic,
BIOCELL 2023, 47(11), 2321-2334. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.043796
Received 14 July 2023; Accepted 08 September 2023; Issue published 27 November 2023
Abstract
The biointerface dynamics influence any cancer spreading through the epithelium since it is documented in the
early stages some malignancies (like epithelial cancer). The altered rearrangement of epithelial cells has an impact on the
development of cancer. Therefore, it is necessary to comprehend the underlying biological and physical mechanisms of
this biointerface dynamics for early suppression of cancer. While the biological mechanisms include cell signaling and
gene expression, the physical mechanisms are several physical parameters such as the epithelial-cancer interfacial
tension, epithelial surface tension, and compressive stress accumulated within the epithelium. Although the
segregation of epithelia-cancer co-cultured systems was widely investigated, the role of these physical parameters in
cell reorganization is still not fully recognized. Hence, this review is focused on clarifying the role that some physical
parameters have during cell reorganization within the epithelial cell clusters and cancer spread within co-cultured
spheroids. We have applied the developed biophysical model to point out the inter-relations among physical
parameters that influence cell reorganization within epithelial-cancer co-cultured systems. The main results of this
theoretical consideration have been assessed by integrating the biophysical model with biological and bio-mechanical
experiments from the available literature. The epithelial-cancer interfacial tension leads to the reduction of the
biointerface area, which leads to an increase in the compressive residual stress within the epithelial clusters depending
on the viscoelasticity of the epithelial subpopulation. This stress impacts epithelial rearrangement and the dynamics
along the biointerface by influencing the epithelial surface tension and epithelial-cancer interfacial tension. Further,
the interrelation between the epithelial surface tension and epithelial-cancer interfacial tension influences the spread
of cancer cells.
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Cite This Article
APA Style
PAJIC-LIJAKOVIC, I., MILIVOJEVIC, M. (2023). Dynamics along the epithelial-cancer biointerface: hidden system complexities. BIOCELL, 47(11), 2321-2334. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.043796
Vancouver Style
PAJIC-LIJAKOVIC I, MILIVOJEVIC M. Dynamics along the epithelial-cancer biointerface: hidden system complexities. BIOCELL . 2023;47(11):2321-2334 https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.043796
IEEE Style
I. PAJIC-LIJAKOVIC and M. MILIVOJEVIC, "Dynamics along the epithelial-cancer biointerface: Hidden system complexities," BIOCELL , vol. 47, no. 11, pp. 2321-2334. 2023. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.043796