DCC Health & Beauty Solutions

The classical analyses of indirect communication between different cell types necessitate the use of conditioned media. Moreover, the production of conditioned media remains time-consuming and far from physiological and pathological conditions. Although a few models of co-culture are commercially available, they remain restricted to specific assays and are mostly for two types of cells. Here, 3D-printed inserts are used that are compatible with numerous functional assays. The insert allows the separation of one well of a 6-well plate into four compartments. A wide range of combinations can be set. Moreover, windows are designed in each wall of the compartments so that potential intercellular communication between every compartment is possible in the culture medium in a volume-dependent manner. For example, paracrine intercellular communication can be studied between four cell types in monolayer, in 3D (spheroids), or by combining both. In addition, a mix of different cell types can be seeded in the same compartment in 2D or 3D (organoids) format. The absence of a bottom in the 3D-printed inserts allows the usual culture conditions on the plate, possible coating on the plate containing the insert, and direct visualization by optical microscopy. The multiple compartments provide the possibility to collect different cell types independently or to use, in each compartment, different reagents for RNA or protein extraction. In this study, a detailed methodology is provided to use the new 3D-printed insert as a co-culture system. To demonstrate several capacities of this flexible and simple model, previously published functional assays of cell communication were performed in the new 3D-printed inserts and were demonstrated to be reproducible. The 3D-printed inserts and the conventional cell culture using conditioned media led to similar results. In conclusion, the 3D-printed insert is a simple device that can be adapted to numerous models of co-cultures with adherent cell types.

Considering the growing environmental consciousness of consumers in the Cosmetics industry, we have launched a program based on the sustainable development of Rambutan, a well-known tree in Asia. We have developed a bioactive ingredient based on Rambutan leaves to answer one of the major demands of the Cosmetics market: anti-aging. This bioactive ingredient has proven its efficiency on the formation in vitro on collagen and elastic fibers.

Skin is a non classical target tissue for estrogens, whose biological and mechanical properties are affected by the hormonal deprivation occurring at the menopause. Estrogen-related receptors (ERR), closely related to the estrogen receptors (ER), constitute a subfamily of orphan receptors, interfering with ER-mediated signalling pathways. The expression of ERRβ has been detected in only a few adult tissues so far, such as the prostate and the inner ear. Here, we demonstrate the expression of ERRβ in normal human skin. ERRβ was detected in human epidermis, in both keratinocytes and Langerhans cells, by immunohistochemistry. These results were validated on freshly extracted epidermal cells and on monolayer-cultured keratinocytes by RT-PCR and western blotting (WB), suggesting the implication of ERRβ in skin immunity and endocrine effects.