Breast cancer-on-chip for patient-specific efficacy and safety testing of CAR-T cells.

Physiologically relevant human models that recapitulate the challenges of solid tumors and the tumor microenvironment (TME) are highly desired in the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell field. We developed a breast cancer-on-chip model with an integrated endothelial barrier that enables the transmigration of perfused immune cells, their infiltration into the tumor, and concomitant monitoring of cytokine release during perfused culture over a period of up to 8 days. Here, we exemplified its use for investigating CAR-T cell efficacy and the ability to control the immune reaction with a pharmacological on/off switch.

Autologous Human Immunocompetent White Adipose Tissue-on-Chip.

Obesity and associated diseases, such as diabetes, have reached epidemic proportions globally. In this era of "diabesity", white adipose tissue (WAT) has become a target of high interest for therapeutic strategies. To gain insights into mechanisms of adipose (patho-)physiology, researchers traditionally relied on animal models.

Human stem cell-based retina on chip as new translational model for validation of AAV retinal gene therapy vectors.

Gene therapies using adeno-associated viruses (AAVs) are among the most promising strategies to treat or even cure hereditary and acquired retinal diseases. However, the development of new efficient AAV vectors is slow and costly, largely because of the lack of suitable non-clinical models. By faithfully recreating structure and function of human tissues, human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived retinal organoids could become an essential part of the test cascade addressing translational aspects.

Isolation, Integration, and Culture of Human Mature Adipocytes Leveraging Organ-on-Chip Technology.

Research on white adipose tissue (WAT), which constitutes one-fifth to one-half of the total body mass of a human's body, has gained more and more interest and attention in the era of "diabesity". In vitro research on mature human WAT is hampered by many challenges and, hence, a majority of WAT-related research is conducted using animal models as well as clinical observations and genome-wide association studies (GWAS), both featuring limitations in terms of translatability and potential for experimental interventions, respectively. Here, we describe methods to isolate primary mature human adipocytes from biopsies and to fabricate tailored organ-on-chip platforms for the long-term culture of WAT constructs.

WAT-on-a-chip integrating human mature white adipocytes for mechanistic research and pharmaceutical applications.

Obesity and its numerous adverse health consequences have taken on global, pandemic proportions. White adipose tissue (WAT) - a key contributor in many metabolic diseases - contributes about one fourth of a healthy human's body mass. Despite its significance, many WAT-related pathophysiogical mechanisms in humans are still not understood, largely due to the reliance on non-human animal models.