An Organ-on-a-Chip Modular Platform with Integrated Immunobiosensors for Monitoring the Extracellular Environment.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Cellular Biology
• Microfluidics

Background:

• Organ-on-a-chip (OoC) systems mimic human organ functionality and microfluidic environments.
• A key limitation of current OoC technology is the lack of integrated biosensors for real-time monitoring of cellular behavior and responses.
• This gap hinders accurate assessment of physiological responses and drug efficacy in preclinical studies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and integrate biosensors onto a modular OoC platform for real-time monitoring of cellular environments.
• To enable continuous observation of cellular responses to various stimuli.
• To address the limitations in current OoC technology for preclinical research and drug development.

Main Methods:

• Development and modular integration of a biosensor array into an OoC microfluidic platform.
• Utilizing commercially fabricated printed circuit board (PCB) components for cost-efficiency and scalability.
• Demonstrating the platform's capability to sustain human cell proliferation and detect specific biomarkers like IL-6.

Main Results:

• Successful in-series modular integration of a biosensor array into an OoC system.
• Demonstrated viability of the platform for sustaining human cell proliferation.
• Validated the detection of IL-6, an inflammatory mediator protein, in real-time within the OoC system.

Conclusions:

• The developed sensor-integrated OoC platform enables real-time monitoring of cellular environments and responses.
• The use of commercial PCB components ensures cost-efficiency and scalability for manufacturing.
• This advancement significantly improves the accuracy of preclinical studies, facilitating better drug development and disease treatment strategies.