Slivka, S. R.and R. L. Bartel. Rapid Estimation of Collagen in a Dermal Model [Letter to the Editor]. In Vitro Cell. Dev. Biol. November-December 1992. 28A: 690-692. [CopyrightÓ 1992 by the Society of In Vitro Biology (formerly the Tissue Culture Association). Permission to reproduce on website by the copyright owner.]

dimethyl sulfoxide - 67-68-5; ethanol - 64-17-5; trans-retinoic acid - 302-79-4; cis-retinoic acid - 4759-48-2; retinol - 68-26-8; hydrocortisone - 50-23-7; dexamethasone - 50-02-2; epidermal growth factor - 62229-50-9

The regulation of collagen metabolism by dermal fibroblasts is involved in cellular growth and differentiation in both normal and pathological states. The ability to study net collagen matrix synthesis in vitro has been hampered because growth of cells in monolayer is essentially two-dimensional and only a minimum amount of matrix is formed. In monolayers, collagen synthesis is measured by assaying the hydroxyproline content of collagen microfibrils released into the medium. We developed an Aniline Blue Assay for the assessment of net collagen matrix deposition in a three-dimensional dermal model culture system (commercially available from Advanced Tissue Sciences, Inc., La Jolla, CA). This dermal model consists of neonatal foreskin fibroblasts grown on a nylon mesh scaffold. When on nylon mesh, a three-dimensional tissue-like structure forms which consists of fibroblasts at discrete distances with extracellular matrix surrounding them. This model was laser-cut into 1.21 cm2 pieces, placed in 24-well tissue culture dishes and incubated with test compounds for prolonged periods (e.g. 30 days). The model has proven useful for the evaluation of chemical cytotoxicity, irritancy and growth factor efficacy.