Microfluidic engineering of immune-competent organs-on-chips and their applications

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Immunology
• Microfluidics

Background:

• Conventional models limit the study of complex immune responses.
• Organs-on-Chips (OoCs) offer a promising alternative for in vitro disease modeling.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the design principles of biomimetic microfluidic OoCs for immune system modeling.
• To explore applications in immunotherapy screening, inflammatory diseases, and autoimmune disorders.
• To discuss integration with organoids and multi-omics for mechanistic insights.

Main Methods:

• Integration of microfluidics, tissue engineering, and biomaterials.
• Precise control over cellular composition, ECM architecture, and biophysical signals.
• Modeling of specific immune contexts, including tumor microenvironments and barrier organs.

Main Results:

• Biomimetic OoCs enable the reconstitution of physiological and pathological immune niches.
• These platforms facilitate the study of tumor immunology, inflammation, and autoimmune diseases.
• Integration with patient-derived organoids and multi-omics provides novel immunological insights.

Conclusions:

• Biomimetic microfluidic OoCs are advancing personalized immuno-medicine and immunotherapeutic development.
• Challenges remain in standardization and incorporating greater biological complexity.
• These platforms hold significant translational prospects for drug discovery and clinical applications.