New techniques and methods in the study of the invasion, cell migration and MMPs activity in vitro and in animal models

Background & Objective: Cancer metastasis is the primary cause of cancer morbidity and mortality, it accounts for about 90% of cancer deaths. Cancer treatment has improved significantly, due to early detection and inhibition of cancer growth. The ability to invade and migrate is important in malignant tumor cells. The study of cell migration is valuable in cancer diagnosis, prognosis, drug development and treatment. New methods are available to investigate the invasion, migration and the activity of enzymes involved in the invasion process in the laboratory. The effectiveness and efficacy of various anti-cancer drugs and compounds can be studied using these methods in laboratory and animal models. Conclusion: In this paper, we offer a summary of in-vitro migration assays, including the transwell migration assay, scratch wound assay, microfluidic chamber assay, exclusion zone assay, fence assay, micro carrier bead assay, spheroid migration assay and in-vivo approach, Chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assay. This review also provides an overview of methods, In situ Zymography, ELISA, and FRET based measurement of MMP activity and Substrate Zymography for measuring the level of metalloproteinase enzyme as the major enzyme in the degradation of extracellular matrix.