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Biomimetics
Special Issues
Organ-on-a-Chip Platforms for Drug Delivery and Tissue Engineering
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Organ-on-a-Chip Platforms for Drug Delivery and Tissue Engineering

A special issue of Biomimetics (ISSN 2313-7673). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomimetic Design, Constructions and Devices".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 May 2025 | Viewed by 8081

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Amir Seyfoori

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Laboratory for Innovations in Micro Engineering (LiME), Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
Interests: organs-on-a-chip; 3D biopriniting; tumor organoids; drug delivery; tissue engineering; immunotherapy
Dr. Amir Reza Aref

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
Interests: tumor organoid-on-a-chip systems

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The prevalence of life-threatening diseases like cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and neurological disorders is increasing. There is a need to develop new therapeutic systems with better clinical outcomes. However, current drug development processes have failed to produce new drugs because they rely on traditional two-dimensional lab tests and basic animal models that do not fully replicate human pathophysiology. The challenge is to develop complex disease models that better mimic the human tissue environment. Organ-on-a-chip (OoC) devices have been developed as platforms to address these issues. These systems can replicate the dynamic microenvironment of different tissues using a combination of microfluidics and cell culture. They have various applications in biomedical research and clinical practice, such as disease modeling, drug discovery, personalized medicine, and environmental testing. This Special Issue aims to cover the latest organ-on-a-chip systems for modeling and monitoring different diseases as well as assessing the effectiveness of new drug delivery systems. Additionally, this Special Issue will focus on novel OoC systems combined with machine learning methodologies that utilize AI algorithms to analyze pre-clinical experimental results and assess the efficacy of therapeutic treatments for specific diseases.

Dr. Amir Seyfoori
Dr. Amir Reza Aref
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomimetics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • tumor-on-a-chip
  • organs-on-a-chip
  • organoids
  • disease modeling
  • microphysiological systems
  • drug discovery and toxicology
  • regenerative medicine
  • immune systems-on-a-chip
  • personalized medicine

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 2557 KiB  
Article
A Microphysiological Model to Mimic the Placental Remodeling during Early Stage of Pregnancy under Hypoxia-Induced Trophoblast Invasion
by Seorin Jeong, Ahmed Fuwad, Sunhee Yoon, Tae-Joon Jeon and Sun Min Kim
Biomimetics 2024, 9(5), 289; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics9050289 - 12 May 2024
Viewed by 1786
Abstract
Placental trophoblast invasion is critical for establishing the maternal–fetal interface, yet the mechanisms driving trophoblast-induced maternal arterial remodeling remain elusive. To address this gap, we developed a three-dimensional microfluidic placenta-on-chip model that mimics early pregnancy placentation in a hypoxic environment. By studying human [...] Read more.
Placental trophoblast invasion is critical for establishing the maternal–fetal interface, yet the mechanisms driving trophoblast-induced maternal arterial remodeling remain elusive. To address this gap, we developed a three-dimensional microfluidic placenta-on-chip model that mimics early pregnancy placentation in a hypoxic environment. By studying human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) under oxygen-deprived conditions upon trophoblast invasion, we observed significant HUVEC artery remodeling, suggesting the critical role of hypoxia in placentation. In particular, we found that trophoblasts secrete matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) proteins under hypoxic conditions, which contribute to arterial remodeling by the degradation of extracellular matrix components. This MMP-mediated remodeling is critical for facilitating trophoblast invasion and proper establishment of the maternal–fetal interface. In addition, our platform allows real-time monitoring of HUVEC vessel contraction during trophoblast interaction, providing valuable insights into the dynamic interplay between trophoblasts and maternal vasculature. Collectively, our findings highlight the importance of MMP-mediated arterial remodeling in placental development and underscore the potential of our platform to study pregnancy-related complications and evaluate therapeutic interventions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Organ-on-a-Chip Platforms for Drug Delivery and Tissue Engineering)
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15 pages, 6513 KiB  
Article
3D-Printed Tumor-on-a-Chip Model for Investigating the Effect of Matrix Stiffness on Glioblastoma Tumor Invasion
by Meitham Amereh, Amir Seyfoori, Briana Dallinger, Mostafa Azimzadeh, Evan Stefanek and Mohsen Akbari
Biomimetics 2023, 8(5), 421; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8050421 - 11 Sep 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2274
Abstract
Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) tumor progression has been recognized to be correlated with extracellular matrix (ECM) stiffness. Dynamic variation of tumor ECM is primarily regulated by a family of enzymes which induce remodeling and degradation. In this paper, we investigated the effect of matrix [...] Read more.
Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) tumor progression has been recognized to be correlated with extracellular matrix (ECM) stiffness. Dynamic variation of tumor ECM is primarily regulated by a family of enzymes which induce remodeling and degradation. In this paper, we investigated the effect of matrix stiffness on the invasion pattern of human glioblastoma tumoroids. A 3D-printed tumor-on-a-chip platform was utilized to culture human glioblastoma tumoroids with the capability of evaluating the effect of stiffness on tumor progression. To induce variations in the stiffness of the collagen matrix, different concentrations of collagenase were added, thereby creating an inhomogeneous collagen concentration. To better understand the mechanisms involved in GBM invasion, an in silico hybrid mathematical model was used to predict the evolution of a tumor in an inhomogeneous environment, providing the ability to study multiple dynamic interacting variables. The model consists of a continuum reaction–diffusion model for the growth of tumoroids and a discrete model to capture the migration of single cells into the surrounding tissue. Results revealed that tumoroids exhibit two distinct patterns of invasion in response to the concentration of collagenase, namely ring-type and finger-type patterns. Moreover, higher concentrations of collagenase resulted in greater invasion lengths, confirming the strong dependency of tumor behavior on the stiffness of the surrounding matrix. The agreement between the experimental results and the model’s predictions demonstrates the advantages of this approach in investigating the impact of various extracellular matrix characteristics on tumor growth and invasion. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Organ-on-a-Chip Platforms for Drug Delivery and Tissue Engineering)
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Review

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24 pages, 1542 KiB  
Review
Gut-on-a-Chip Research for Drug Development: Implications of Chip Design on Preclinical Oral Bioavailability or Intestinal Disease Studies
by Joanne M. Donkers, Jamie I. van der Vaart and Evita van de Steeg
Biomimetics 2023, 8(2), 226; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8020226 - 28 May 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3903
Abstract
The gut plays a key role in drug absorption and metabolism of orally ingested drugs. Additionally, the characterization of intestinal disease processes is increasingly gaining more attention, as gut health is an important contributor to our overall health. The most recent innovation to [...] Read more.
The gut plays a key role in drug absorption and metabolism of orally ingested drugs. Additionally, the characterization of intestinal disease processes is increasingly gaining more attention, as gut health is an important contributor to our overall health. The most recent innovation to study intestinal processes in vitro is the development of gut-on-a-chip (GOC) systems. Compared to conventional in vitro models, they offer more translational value, and many different GOC models have been presented over the past years. Herein, we reflect on the almost unlimited choices in designing and selecting a GOC for preclinical drug (or food) development research. Four components that largely influence the GOC design are highlighted, namely (1) the biological research questions, (2) chip fabrication and materials, (3) tissue engineering, and (4) the environmental and biochemical cues to add or measure in the GOC. Examples of GOC studies in the two major areas of preclinical intestinal research are presented: (1) intestinal absorption and metabolism to study the oral bioavailability of compounds, and (2) treatment-orientated research for intestinal diseases. The last section of this review presents an outlook on the limitations to overcome in order to accelerate preclinical GOC research. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Organ-on-a-Chip Platforms for Drug Delivery and Tissue Engineering)
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