Laboratory Dr. Pachmann/maintrac® involved in study in Scientific Report
Mon, 03 Feb 2025 12:45:09 +0100
The laboratory Dr. Pachmann in Bayreuth, in collaboration with the University and University Hospital of Regensburg, played a key role in conducting the study “Patientderived xenografts from circulating cancer stem cells as a preclinical model for personalized pancreatic cancer research” [Wagner et al., 2025], which was published in the journal Scientific Reports on January 23rd, 2025.
The aim of the study was to develop an innovative approach for the treatment of patients with pancreatic cancer by generating patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) on the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) of chicken eggs based on tumorspheres. Biomarkers such as circulating epithelial tumor cells (CETCs/CTCs) and circulating cancer stem cells (cCSCs) played a central role in this process. The maintrac® method developed by laboratory Dr. Pachmann was used to identify and quantify circulating epithelial tumor cells in the blood. At the same time, the stemtrac® method was used to successfully cultivate tumor spheres from circulating cancer stem cells (cCSCs), which were then transplanted onto the CAM membrane of chicken eggs.
The results of the study showed that it is possible to successfully create patientderived xenografts (PDXs) based on tumor spheres within just seven days. In addition, the structure of these xenografts showed a high degree of correspondence with the patient's original tumor. It was also found that the number of tumorspheres formed from circulating tumor stem cells correlated with the stage of the patient's disease.
The study demonstrates that both the number of circulating epithelial tumor cells (CETCs/CTCs) and tumorspheres can provide valuable information about tumor progression. These findings form a basis for the development of personalized therapy strategies. In addition, the CAM model with patient-derived xenografts opens up new possibilities in precision medicine by making it possible to individually test the efficacy of therapies before they are applied to patients. You can find the full publication here:
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-87054-z