3D Bioprinted GelMA-Nanoclay Hydrogels Induce Colorectal Cancer Stem Cells Through Activating Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a rare cell population in tumors that are responsible for tumor recurrence and metastasis. They are a priority as therapeutic targets, however, assays targeting CSCs have been limited by expanding and maintaining CSCs in vitro. Here, the authors find that gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA)-nanoclay hybrid hydrogels can induce and enrich colorectal CSCs assisted by three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting. The presence of the nanoclay increases the printability, Young's modulus, pore size, and cytocompatibility of the hydrogels. Bioprinted GelMA-nanoclay hydrogels promote the formation of spheroids expressing elevated levels of the stemness markers LGR5, CD133, CD26, and SOX2. Cancer cells grown in GelMA-nanoclay hydrogel possess higher self-renewal and differentiation capacity in vitro and higher tumorigenic capacity in vivo. GelMA-nanoclay hydrogels induce CSCs by stimulating the activation of the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway. Further studies demonstrate that spheroids from GelMA-nanoclay hydrogels possess increased stemness, higher consistency, yield, and sensitivity to the anti-CSC compounds compared to the classic CSC-enrichment model. Collectively, this study may provide a valuable biomaterial and method for inducing and enriching CSCs, to facilitate the effective CSC-targeting drug screening.