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Multi-cellular 3D human primary liver cell culture elevates metabolic activity under fluidic flow.
Mandy B Esch1, Jean-Matthieu Prot, Ying I Wang
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, 305 Weill Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 853, USA. mls50@cornell.edu.
Lab on a Chip
|April 11, 2015
Summary
This study introduces a low-cost liver cell culture device with fluidic flow, enhancing hepatocyte metabolic activity and drug response. The device offers a cost-effective platform for evaluating drug efficacy under dynamic cell culture conditions.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Cell Biology
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Liver cell cultures are crucial for drug testing and disease modeling.
- Static cell cultures do not fully replicate the dynamic in vivo microenvironment.
- Developing cost-effective, physiologically relevant liver models is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate a low-cost liver cell culture device utilizing fluidic flow.
- To investigate the metabolic response of primary liver cells under dynamic fluidic conditions.
- To assess the potential of this system for drug evaluation.
Main Methods:
- A novel, inexpensive device was engineered to create periodically changing fluidic flow over a 3D primary liver cell culture.
- The system incorporated multiple liver cell types, including hepatocytes and non-parenchymal cells.
- Cellular responses, including albumin, urea, P450 enzyme activity, and interleukin-8 production, were measured over 14 days.
Main Results:
- Hepatocytes in fluidic culture showed elevated albumin and urea production compared to static cultures.
- Hepatocytes exhibited induced P450 enzyme activity upon challenge with inducers.
- Non-parenchymal cells responded to bacterial lipoprotein challenge by producing interleukin-8.
Conclusions:
- Periodically changing fluidic flow enhances the metabolic activity of primary liver cell cultures.
- The observed increase in metabolic activity may be due to factors beyond shear stress, such as improved gas and metabolite exchange.
- This low-cost, dynamic cell culture system provides a promising platform for drug evaluation and liver research.
