{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,29]],"date-time":"2026-10-29T15:32:36Z","timestamp":1793287956542,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":55,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,6]],"date-time":"2026-02-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1770336000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,6]],"date-time":"2026-02-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1770336000000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"funder":[{"name":"Ministero della Salute","award":["Ricerca Corrente"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["Ricerca Corrente"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00789fa95","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"crossref"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Thyroid\u00ae"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is a rare neuroendocrine malignancy with a 10-year mortality rate up to 50%. Current therapies for metastatic MTC comprise various tyrosine-kinase inhibitors, but resistance often appears due to the need for lifelong treatments. Like in other tumors, genetic, epigenetic, post-transcriptional, post-translational, and cell\u2013cell interaction events influence drug response. However, progress in understanding MTC biology is limited by the lack of reliable\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">in\u00a0vivo<\/jats:italic>\n                      and\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                      models. This study aims to develop a patient-derived model faithfully reproducing the microenvironmental alterations present in MTC.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      We applied a two-step protocol consisting of a first phase in which primary cells are cultivated as multicellular spheroids and a second phase in which they are switched to adherent cultures. After evaluation of the genetic background by targeted Next Generation Sequencing, we characterized our cells phenotype by examining a panel of stem\/progenitor-related markers, the secretory abilities by ELISAs, the drug response by proliferation assays, the\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">in\u00a0vivo<\/jats:italic>\n                      angiogenic and invasiveness by the use of zebrafish model, the\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                      invasivity by Matrigel Dome assays and the spatial variation of stem\/progenitor marker in both 3D cell models and tissue samples by confocal microscopy.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Our model allowed the establishment of eight MTC patient-derived cell lines with different genetic backgrounds. The cultures faithfully reproduced the changes in stem and progenitor markers that we detected in our cohort of MTC tissue samples and could be successfully xenotransplanted in zebrafish model, showing both angiogenetic and invasive properties. Drug screening assays revealed the potential of our model for the study of patient-specific responses, as we were able to identify different candidate regulators of the sensitivity to currently available therapies for MTC.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusions:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Our two-step protocol successfully generated primary MTC lines that maintain high plasticity, can be cultivated for several passages, and recreate the heterogeneity observed in patients\u2019 tissues. Our model will offer a robust platform for preclinical drug testing and mechanistic studies, addressing a longstanding gap in MTC research. It enables exploration of tumor microenvironment interactions and personalized therapeutic responses, supporting progress beyond current genomic-driven frameworks.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1177\/10507256251408825","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,6]],"date-time":"2026-02-06T11:42:23Z","timestamp":1770378143000},"page":"291-304","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Patient-Derived\n                    <i>in Vitro<\/i>\n                    Models Reveal Insights into Medullary Thyroid Cancer Microenvironment and Resistance to Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"36","author":[{"given":"Elisa Stellaria","family":"Grassi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Laboratory of Endocrine and Metabolic Research, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milano, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Viola","family":"Ghiandai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Laboratory of Endocrine and Metabolic Research, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milano, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Germano","family":"Gaudenzi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Geriatric and Oncologic Neuroendocrinology Research, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Elena","family":"Massardi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Geriatric and Oncologic Neuroendocrinology Research, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Valentina","family":"Cirello","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Laboratory of Endocrine and Metabolic Research, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milano, Italy."},{"name":"Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, University of Milan, Milan, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Erika","family":"Carbone","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Davide","family":"Gentilini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy."},{"name":"Bioinformatics and Statistical Genomics Unit, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sarah","family":"Uraghi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Laboratory of Endocrine and Metabolic Research, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milano, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giacomo","family":"Gazzano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Pathology Unit, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gianlorenzo","family":"Dionigi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, University of Milan, Milan, Italy."},{"name":"Division of Surgery, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Carla","family":"Colombo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Laboratory of Endocrine and Metabolic Research, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milano, Italy."},{"name":"Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, University of Milan, Milan, 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