Both biological and engineering approaches have contributed significantly to the recent advance in the field of mechanobiology.Collaborating with biologists,bio-engineers and materials scientists have employed the tec...Both biological and engineering approaches have contributed significantly to the recent advance in the field of mechanobiology.Collaborating with biologists,bio-engineers and materials scientists have employed the techniques stemming from the conventional semiconductor industry to rebuild cellular milieus that mimic critical aspects of in vivo conditions and elicit cell/tissue responses in vitro.Such reductionist approaches have help to unveil important mechanosensing mechanism in both cellular and tissue level,including stem cell differentiation and proliferation,tissue expansion,wound healing,and cancer metastasis.In this mini-review,we discuss various microfabrication methods that have been applied to generate specific properties and functions of designer substrates/devices,which disclose cell-microenvironment interactions and the underlying biological mechanisms.In brief,we emphasize on the studies of cell/tissue mechanical responses to substrate adhesiveness,stiffness,topography,and shear flow.Moreover,we comment on the new concepts of measurement and paradigms for investigations of biological mechanotransductions that are yet to emerge due to on-going interdisciplinary efforts in the fields of mechanobiology and microengineering.展开更多
Nowadays the pharmaceutical industry is facing long and expensive drug discovery processes. Current preclinical drug evaluation strategies that utilize oversimplified cell cultures and animal models cannot satisfy the...Nowadays the pharmaceutical industry is facing long and expensive drug discovery processes. Current preclinical drug evaluation strategies that utilize oversimplified cell cultures and animal models cannot satisfy the growing demand for new and effective drugs. The microengineered biomimetic system, namely organ-on-chip (OOC), simulating both the biology and physiology of human organs, has shown greater advantages than traditional models in drug efficacy and safety evaluation. The microengineered co-culture models recapitulate the complex interactions between different types of cells in vivo. Organ-on-chip system has also avoided the substantial interspecies differences in key disease pathways and disease-induced changes in gene expression profiles between human and other animal models. Biomimetic microsystems representing different organs have been integrated into a single microdevice and linked by a microfluidic circulatory system in a physiologically relevant manner. In this review, I outline the current development of organ-on-chip, and their applications in drug discovery. This human-on-chip system can model the complex, dynamic process of drug absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion, and more reliably evaluate drug efficacy and toxicity. I also discuss, for the next generation of organ-on-chip, more research is required to identify suitable materials that can be used to mass produce organs-on-chips at low cost, and to scale up the system to be suitable for high-throughput analysis and commercial applications. There are more aspects that need to be further studied, thereby bring a much better tool to patients, drug developers, and clinicians.展开更多
文摘Both biological and engineering approaches have contributed significantly to the recent advance in the field of mechanobiology.Collaborating with biologists,bio-engineers and materials scientists have employed the techniques stemming from the conventional semiconductor industry to rebuild cellular milieus that mimic critical aspects of in vivo conditions and elicit cell/tissue responses in vitro.Such reductionist approaches have help to unveil important mechanosensing mechanism in both cellular and tissue level,including stem cell differentiation and proliferation,tissue expansion,wound healing,and cancer metastasis.In this mini-review,we discuss various microfabrication methods that have been applied to generate specific properties and functions of designer substrates/devices,which disclose cell-microenvironment interactions and the underlying biological mechanisms.In brief,we emphasize on the studies of cell/tissue mechanical responses to substrate adhesiveness,stiffness,topography,and shear flow.Moreover,we comment on the new concepts of measurement and paradigms for investigations of biological mechanotransductions that are yet to emerge due to on-going interdisciplinary efforts in the fields of mechanobiology and microengineering.
文摘Nowadays the pharmaceutical industry is facing long and expensive drug discovery processes. Current preclinical drug evaluation strategies that utilize oversimplified cell cultures and animal models cannot satisfy the growing demand for new and effective drugs. The microengineered biomimetic system, namely organ-on-chip (OOC), simulating both the biology and physiology of human organs, has shown greater advantages than traditional models in drug efficacy and safety evaluation. The microengineered co-culture models recapitulate the complex interactions between different types of cells in vivo. Organ-on-chip system has also avoided the substantial interspecies differences in key disease pathways and disease-induced changes in gene expression profiles between human and other animal models. Biomimetic microsystems representing different organs have been integrated into a single microdevice and linked by a microfluidic circulatory system in a physiologically relevant manner. In this review, I outline the current development of organ-on-chip, and their applications in drug discovery. This human-on-chip system can model the complex, dynamic process of drug absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion, and more reliably evaluate drug efficacy and toxicity. I also discuss, for the next generation of organ-on-chip, more research is required to identify suitable materials that can be used to mass produce organs-on-chips at low cost, and to scale up the system to be suitable for high-throughput analysis and commercial applications. There are more aspects that need to be further studied, thereby bring a much better tool to patients, drug developers, and clinicians.
