Mimicking Human Pathophysiology in Organ‐on‐Chip Devices

Abstract

Convergence of life sciences, engineering, and basic sciences has opened new horizons for biologically inspired innovations, and a considerable number of organ‐on‐a‐chip platforms have been developed for mimicking physiological systems of biological organs such as the brain, heart, lung, kidney, liver, and gut. Various biophysicochemical factors can also be introduced into such organ‐on‐a‐chip platforms to study metabolic and systemic effects spanning from drug toxicity to different pathologic manifestations. There is also a pressing need to develop better disease models for common pathologies using variations of these platforms. This can be achieved by recapitulating the unique microenvironment of a disease to investigate the cause and development of abnormal conditions as well as the structural and functional changes resulting from such a pathology. In this review, the organ‐on‐a‐chip platforms that have been developed to model different pathologies of neurodegenerative, cardiovascular, respiratory, hepatic, and digestive systems, along with cancer are summarized. Although the field is still in its infancy, it is anticipated that developing disease model‐on‐a‐chip platforms will likely be a valuable addition to the field of disease modeling, pathology studies, and improved drug discovery.

Freeform, Reconfigurable Embedded Printing of All‐Aqueous 3D Architectures

“…[5,[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] The major challenge is to transform techniques developed for resins and thermoplastics to print delicate biological materials; the aim is to impart functionalities by accurately and precisely replicating the vascularized multiscale architecture of biological tissues. [5,[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] The major challenge is to transform techniques developed for resins and thermoplastics to print delicate biological materials; the aim is to impart functionalities by accurately and precisely replicating the vascularized multiscale architecture of biological tissues.…”

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Bioprinted tissues and organs are applied as in vitro models for high-throughput screening of drugs, transplantable tissues, www.advmat.de www.advancedsciencenews.com [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Bioprinted tissues and organs are applied as in vitro models for high-throughput screening of drugs, transplantable tissues, www.advmat.de www.advancedsciencenews.com…”

Biofabrication Strategies and Engineered In Vitro Systems for Vascular Mechanobiology

“…The implementation of various organ‐on‐a‐chip, human‐on‐a‐chip, and disease‐on‐a‐chip platforms to create microphysiological systems have revolutionized the mimicry of human pathophysiology in miniaturized in vitro devices. [ 12,22,24,179 ] Microphysiological systems have enabled mechanistic investigations of multiple biological variables on vascular‐parenchymal microenvironments as well as testing efficacies and toxicity profiles of therapeutic agents and potential drug candidates. The ability to integrate these systems with other techniques (self‐assembly, bioprinting, photolithography, laser‐based techniques), compatibility with a wide range of biomaterials, parallelization of fluidic operations in multiplexed culture systems, and high‐content imaging have accelerated the commercial translation of these systems for drug discovery applications.…”

“…In this regard, recent advances in tissue engineering, biomaterials, and biofabrication strategies to generate perfused microphysiological systems have facilitated the development of various in vitro models that closely recapitulate in vivo and native physiology. [ 12–15 ] Implementation of macroscale synthetic tissues has improved our understanding of underlying mechanisms of tissue function and related pathology. [ 16,17 ] In line with these advances, the need to vascularize synthetic tissue constructs and establish dynamic, fluidic, perfusion cultures has also arisen, thereby opening new avenues for investigating microenvironmental changes that occur during cardiovascular disease.…”

“…[ 18–21 ] Several microphysiological systems have been developed for disease modeling and drug development. [ 12,22–25 ] The demand for employing these platforms is primarily driven by the added benefits of: 1) recapitulation of complex 3D, tissue‐specific microphysiology via use of multicellular co‐cultures and ECM‐mimetic biomaterials, 2) use of microliter‐ to picoliter‐scale reagents and media, 3) user‐defined, programmable, and continuous control of 3D vessel structure and flow, 4) spatiotemporal control over the distribution of biochemical gradients, and 5) the ability to monitor associated cellular and tissue events with high spatial and temporal resolution over extended time periods.…”