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Multilayer microfluidic platform for the study of luminal, transmural, and interstitial flow
Gi-Hun Lee1, Stephanie A Huang1, Wen Y Aw1
1Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, Chapel Hill and Raleigh, NC, United States of America.
Biofabrication
|January 6, 2022
Summary
Researchers developed a microfluidic platform to study fluid pressure in engineered blood and lymphatic vessels. This tool helps understand how fluid imbalances contribute to diseases like lymphedema and cancer.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Fluid Dynamics
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Efficient nutrient delivery relies on balanced fluid pressures in blood, lymphatic, and interstitial spaces.
- Current assays limit understanding of how fluid flow signals are integrated across cells in native tissues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce a novel multi-layer microfluidic platform (MμLTI-Flow) for culturing engineered microvessels.
- To enable independent control of blood, lymphatic, and interstitial fluid pressures (IFPs).
- To analyze fluid mechanical parameters and cellular mechanisms in diseases involving fluid imbalances.
Main Methods:
- Developed a multi-layer microfluidic platform (MμLTI-Flow).
- Engineered blood and lymphatic microvessels within the platform.
- Independently controlled blood, lymphatic, and IFPs.
- Used optical microscopy to measure fluid velocity and validated with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated varying interstitial fluid flow rates based on controlled blood, lymphatic, and interstitial pressures.
- Confirmed consistency between experimental measurements and CFD models.
- Established a platform for analyzing fluid dynamics in microvascular networks.
Conclusions:
- The MμLTI-Flow platform provides a novel method to study fluid dynamics in engineered microvessels.
- This platform facilitates research into diseases characterized by fluid imbalances, such as lymphedema and solid cancer.
- Enables deeper understanding of cellular responses to fluid mechanical stimuli.
