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Updated: Jan 27, 2026

Author Spotlight: Advancing Rapid Detection of Respiratory Pathogens Using Microfluidic Chip
Published on: March 29, 2024
Options for modeling the respiratory system: inserts, scaffolds and microfluidic chips
Veronika Sedláková1, Michaela Kloučková2, Zuzana Garlíková3
1Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 753/5, 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic; Division of Cardiac Surgery, Cardiovascular Tissue Engineering Laboratory, University of Ottawa Heart Institute, 40 Ruskin Street, Ottawa K1Y 4W7, Canada.
Abstract:
The human respiratory system is continuously exposed to varying levels of hazardous substances ranging from environmental toxins to purposely administered drugs. If the noxious effects exceed the inherent regenerative capacity of the respiratory system, injured tissue undergoes complex remodeling that can significantly affect lung function and lead to various diseases. Advanced near-to-native in vitro lung models are required to understand the mechanisms involved in pulmonary damage and repair and to reliably test the toxicity of compounds to lung tissue. This review is an overview of the development of in vitro respiratory system models used for study of lung diseases. It includes discussion of using these models for environmental toxin assessment and pulmonary toxicity screening.
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