Engineering neurovascular organoids with 3D printed microfluidic chips.

Area of Science:

• Developmental Biology
• Biotechnology
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Organ generation requires early vascular interaction, crucial for embryonic development.
• Current organoids lack intrinsic vascularization, hindering growth and research into vascular roles.
• Existing vascularization methods fail to synchronize temporal and spatial development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC)-based method for creating vascularized organoids.
• To enable spatially determined interactions between organoids and vasculature.
• To create a platform for studying organoid-vasculature co-development.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a custom-designed 3D printed microfluidic chip for sequential co-culture.
• Incorporated hPSC-derived pericytes and endothelial cells for de novo vascular network formation.
• Employed cerebral organoids as a model system to test the platform's efficacy.

Main Results:

• Generated organized vascular networks through sprouting and self-assembly of vascular cells on-chip.
• Achieved physical interaction and integration between vasculature and cerebral organoids.
• Created an integrated neurovascular organoid on chip, demonstrating successful vascularization.

Conclusions:

• The 3D printing platform effectively vascularizes organoids in a developmentally matched manner.
• This cost-effective and accessible platform facilitates organoid-vasculature co-development.
• The technology offers new possibilities for studying and manipulating organoid development with vasculature.