Publications by authors named "Nina Heymans"

Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy is a severe genetic heart muscle disease characterized by fibro-fatty replacement of the myocardium. Pathogenic variants causal for this disease are mainly located in desmosomal genes, including desmoplakin (DSP). Renal epithelial cells were isolated from a patient carrying the heterozygous c.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Multicellular tumor spheroids are 3D tissue models that mimic the tumor microenvironment, which helps in drug testing and development using bio- and nanosensors.
  • - These spheroids have important characteristics like consistent size and growth, but their production methods can lead to variability that affects cell behavior and drug response.
  • - The text discusses different spheroid formation protocols and evaluates their compatibility with advanced imaging techniques such as fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) for studying various cancer and stem cell spheroids.
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Assessment of hypoxia, nutrients, metabolite gradients, and other hallmarks of the tumor microenvironment within 3D multicellular spheroid and organoid models represents a challenging analytical task. Here, we report red/near-infrared (NIR) emitting cell staining with O-sensitive nanoparticles, which enable measurements of spheroid oxygenation on a conventional fluorescence microscope. Nanosensor probes, termed "MMIR" (multimodal infrared), incorporate an NIR O-sensitive metalloporphyrin (PtTPTBPF) and deep red aza-BODIPY reference dyes within a biocompatible polymer shell, allowing for oxygen gradient quantification via fluorescence ratio and phosphorescence lifetime readouts.

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