Generation of Human 3D lung tissue cultures for disease modelling

Studying the immunology of the lower airway in humans is hindered by the availability and relevance of tissue culture models. Sampling techniques such as bronchial biopsies are expensive and resource-intensive and may incompletely represent the architecture and immunology of the lung as a whole. Precision-cut lung slices (PCLS) of resected human lungs represent one increasingly popular option for generating anatomically preserved tissue models. PCLS can be used for a wide variety of studies including respiratory immunology, toxicology and pharmacology.

Gerckens et al have created a useful video protocol detailing the generation of PCLS from resected human lung tissue. Briefly, agarose is introduced to the bronchioles of the lung sample and chilled to maintain respiratory architecture. Sections can then be taken from these resected tissues and used to generate PCLS that represent the complex respiratory epithelium.