Applications of Polymers for Organ-on-Chip Technology in Urology

Abstract

Organ-on-chips (OOCs) are microfluidic devices used for creating physiological organ biomimetic systems. OOC technology brings numerous advantages in the current landscape of preclinical models, capable of recapitulating the multicellular assemblage, tissue–tissue interaction, and replicating numerous human pathologies. Moreover, in cancer research, OOCs emulate the 3D hierarchical complexity of in vivo tumors and mimic the tumor microenvironment, being a practical cost-efficient solution for tumor-growth investigation and anticancer drug screening. OOCs are compact and easy-to-use microphysiological functional units that recapitulate the native function and the mechanical strain that the cells experience in the human bodies, allowing the development of a wide range of applications such as disease modeling or even the development of diagnostic devices. In this context, the current work aims to review the scientific literature in the field of microfluidic devices designed for urology applications in terms of OOC fabrication (principles of manufacture and materials used), development of kidney-on-chip models for drug-toxicity screening and kidney tumors modeling, bladder-on-chip models for urinary tract infections and bladder cancer modeling and prostate-on-chip models for prostate cancer modeling.

Multiphoton Lithography as a Promising Tool for Biomedical Applications

“…An "Organ-on-chip" (OoC) is a device combining microfluidic technology with 3D cell culture, which is designed as a specific physiological organ biomimetic system. [179,180] OoCs can be used to serve a plethora of biomedical applications, including organ modeling, disease modeling (incl. cancer), (personalized) drug screening, toxicity screening, development of diagnostic devices, etc.…”

“…cancer), (personalized) drug screening, toxicity screening, development of diagnostic devices, etc. [179] Moreover, organ-on-chip devices have huge potential in replacing animal models, since in vivo tests on animal models are costly and often fail to represent the human physiology and microenvironment due to different metabolic responses and gene expressions. [179] Zeußel et al developed a liver lobule-on-chip via multiphoton polymerization.…”

“…[179] Moreover, organ-on-chip devices have huge potential in replacing animal models, since in vivo tests on animal models are costly and often fail to represent the human physiology and microenvironment due to different metabolic responses and gene expressions. [179] Zeußel et al developed a liver lobule-on-chip via multiphoton polymerization. The researchers were able to create a highly complex perfusable scaffold with similar shear stress and fluid velocity as compared to a native liver lobule (Figure 11).…”

Recreating heterogeneity of bladder cancer microenvironment to study its recurrences and progression

“…The state-of-the-art tissue engineered models, such as organ-on-a-chip, tissue bioprinting or self-assembly (25), offer the most future possibilities to perform advanced validation of clinical or basic science data. Organ-onchips are microfluidic devices used for mimicking the physiology of organs (26). They constitute an alternative to more complex 3D models by presenting a relatively low cost and a consequent reproducibility.…”

Breast tumor-on-chip: from the tumor microenvironment to medical applications

“…81 In addition to this, the limited area of material that can be used is a major disadvantage of injection molding due to the heat shrinkage exhibited by most polymers. 82…”