Microfluidic Invasion Chemotaxis Platform for 3D Neurovascular Co-Culture

Abstract

Advances in microfabrication and biomaterials have enabled the development of microfluidic chips for studying tissue and organ models. While these platforms have been developed primarily for modeling human diseases, they are also used to uncover cellular and molecular mechanisms through in vitro studies, especially in the neurovascular system, where physiological mechanisms and three-dimensional (3D) architecture are difficult to reconstruct via conventional assays. An extracellular matrix (ECM) model with a stable structure possessing the ability to mimic the natural extracellular environment of the cell efficiently is useful for tissue engineering applications. Conventionally used techniques for this purpose, for example, Matrigels, have drawbacks of owning complex fabrication procedures, in some cases not efficient enough in terms of functionality and expenses. Here, we proposed a fabrication protocol for a GelMA hydrogel, which has shown structural stability and the ability to imitate the natural environment of the cell accurately, inside a microfluidic chip utilizing co-culturing of two human cell lines. The chemical composition of the synthesized GelMA was identified by Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry (FTIR), its surface morphology was observed by field emission electron microscopy (FESEM), and the structural properties were analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The swelling behavior of the hydrogel in the microfluidic chip was imaged, and its porosity was examined for 72 h by tracking cell localization using immunofluorescence. GelMA exhibited the desired biomechanical properties, and the viability of cells in both platforms was more than 80% for seven days. Furthermore, GelMA was a viable platform for 3D cell culture studies and was structurally stable over long periods, even when prepared by photopolymerization in a microfluidic platform. This work demonstrated a viable strategy to conduct co-culturing experiments as well as modeling invasion and migration events. This microfluidic assay may have application in drug delivery and dosage optimization studies.

Wave-Shaped Microstructure Cancer Detection Sensor in Terahertz Band: Design and Analysis

“…It is also important to note that environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, and pH may affect the performance of the biosensor we proposed. The proposed biosensor has a lot of potential in implementing other bio applications such as the Microfluidic Invasion Chemotaxis Platform for 3D Neurovascular Co-Culture [52], 3D-Printed Microneedles (MNs) [53], etc., to increase the overall performance and improve the user experience. Microfluidic Invasion Chemotaxis Platform for 3D Neurovascular Co-Culture can be used to study tissue and organ models and model human diseases to check the performance of our biosensor for detection in systems that include more than one cell.…”

Point‐of‐Care Diagnostic Platforms for Loop‐Mediated Isothermal Amplification

“…[129] Microfluidic assays are costeffective and portable analytical devices that operate with a small volume of reagents and samples. [130][131][132][133] The applications of microfluidics range from lab-on-chip platforms to organ-on-chip devices. [134][135][136][137][138][139][140][141][142][143][144][145][146][147][148] Since DNA-or RNA-based diagnostic requires large numbers of nucleic acid to perform amplification, amplification of the original count of nucleic acid is essential for testing.…”

Bioprinting in Microgravity

“…Through the advances in materials especially polymers, − 3D printing has been established in biomedical applications. ,− Bioprinting has also many tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications, including, but not limited to, organ-on-a-chip devices for medical and pharmaceutical research − and in vitro models of disease tissues such as tumors for cancer research, human tissue regeneration such as bone, skin, blood vessels, cartilage, and even internal organs to replace those which are damaged or diseased, ,− stem-cell research, − and organoid creation . 3D-bioprinting can enable producing complex 3D structures to mimic the in vivo microenvironment. − With a growing request for scaled-up readily available biomimetic organs and tissues, advances in bioprinting technologies are increasingly imminent and necessary to provide high-throughput, precise construction of cell-laden structures. − …”

“… 34 3D-bioprinting can enable producing complex 3D structures to mimic the in vivo microenvironment. 35 − 38 With a growing request for scaled-up readily available biomimetic organs and tissues, advances in bioprinting technologies are increasingly imminent and necessary to provide high-throughput, precise construction of cell-laden structures. 39 − 42 …”