This technology is a modular platform with engineered tissues linked by vascular perfusion that can be used to study tumor progression and systemic disease in a clinically relevant setting.
Animal models have long been seen as the gold standard for testing drug efficacy and studying disease progression; however, these models are not only costly and time-intensive, but also insufficient at modeling human-specific diseases. As research moves towards ‘organ-on-a-chip’ models for pre-clinical testing, the individual human tissues engineered from primary or stem cells are increasingly successful in recapitulating organ level functions. However, there is an unmet need for an interconnected platform that maintains individual tissue structure and function while allowing for interactions and crosstalk between tissues through the vascular flow containing circulating cells and molecular factors.
This system allows each of the multiple human tissues representing different organs to be cultured in their own optimized environment that is separated from vascular flow by a selectively permeable endothelial barrier. The vascular perfusion linking the tissues mimics blood flow in the human circulatory system. This platform has been used to study systemic diseases, multi-organ toxicity, and potential drug effects. It can preserve tissues for weeks to months, allowing for studies of chronic effects in patient-specific settings.
Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, Ph.D.
Patent Pending (WO/2021/237195)
IR CU19102, CU20238, CU20366
Licensing Contact: Beth Kauderer