Department of Micro Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.
Published: November 2019
AI Article Synopsis
Article Abstract
Organs-on-chips are microfluidic devices typically fabricated from polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). Since PDMS has many attractive properties including high optical clarity and compliance, PDMS is very useful for cell culture applications; however, PDMS possesses a significant drawback in that small hydrophobic molecules are strongly absorbed. This drawback hinders widespread use of PDMS-based devices for drug discovery and development. Here, we describe a microfluidic cell culture system made of a tetrafluoroethylene-propylene (FEPM) elastomer. We demonstrated that FEPM does not absorb small hydrophobic compounds including rhodamine B and three types of drugs, nifedipine, coumarin, and Bay K8644, whereas PDMS absorbs them strongly. The device consists of two FEPM layers of microchannels separated by a thin collagen vitrigel membrane. Since FEPM is flexible and biocompatible, this microfluidic device can be used to culture cells while applying mechanical strain. When human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were subjected to cyclic strain (~10%) for 4 h in this device, HUVECs reoriented and aligned perpendicularly in response to the cyclic stretch. Moreover, we demonstrated that this device can be used to replicate the epithelial-endothelial interface as well as to provide physiological mechanical strain and fluid flow. This method offers a robust platform to produce organs-on-chips for drug discovery and development.
State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China.
Background: To determine the role of N-methyladenosine (mA) modification in the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME), as well as their association with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD).
Methods: Consensus clustering was performed to identify the subgroups with distinct immune or mA modification patterns using profiles from TCGA. A risk score model was constructed using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression and validated in two independent cohorts and LUAD tissue microarrays.
The aim of the present study was to explore the role of ovarian cancer G protein-coupled receptor 1 (OGR1) in osteoclast differentiation and activity induced by extracellular acid. The impact of extracellular acidification on osteoclasts was investigated. Briefly, osteoclasts were generated from RAW 264.
In this protocol for obtaining doubled haploids plants (DH), we propose a new method for microspore isolation. This method is useful for genotypes of the Brassicaceae family with low responsiveness to DH technology. For such crops, it allows increasing the embryo yield several times and sometimes obtaining embryos for the first time.
DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) occurring within the genomic DNA of mammalian cells significantly impact cell survival, depending upon their repair capacity. This study presents a mathematical model to fit fibroblast survival rates with a sequence-specific DSB burden induced by the restriction enzyme AsiSI. When cells had a sporadic DSB burden under mixed culture, cell growth showed a good fit to the Lotka-Volterra competitive equation, predicting the presence of modifying factors acting as competitive cell-to-cell interactions compared to monocultures.
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which are multipotent adult cells with many therapeutic effects, can be derived from stromal tissues. MSCs also exert immunoregulatory effects through extracellular vesicles (EVs), cell membrane structures that carry paracrine factors. It is thought that the mediators (cytokines, growth factors, etc.
