Establishment and Characterization of Patient-derived Gastric Organoids from Biopsies of Benign Gastric Body and Antral Epithelium

Gastric patient-derived organoids (PDOs) offer a unique tool for studying gastric biology and pathology. Consequently, these PDOs find increasing use in a wide array of research applications. However, a shortage of published approaches exists for producing gastric PDOs from single-cell digests while maintaining a standardized initial cell seeding density. In this protocol, the emphasis is on the initiation of gastric organoids from isolated single cells and the provision of a method for passaging organoids through fragmentation. Importantly, the protocol demonstrates that a standardized approach to the initial cell seeding density consistently yields gastric organoids from benign biopsy tissue and allows for standardized quantification of organoid growth. Finally, evidence supports the novel observation that gastric PDOs display varying rates of formation and growth based on whether the organoids originate from biopsies of the body or antral regions of the stomach. Specifically, it is revealed that the use of antral biopsy tissue for organoid initiation results in a greater number of organoids formed and more rapid organoid growth over a 20-day period when compared to organoids generated from biopsies of the gastric body. The protocol described herein offers investigators a timely and reproducible method for successfully generating and working with gastric PDOs.