NU 2016-207B

Inventors

Teresa Woodruff*

Hunter Rogers

Short Description

Laboratory automation compatible fluidic culture platform for drug discovery

Background

The current financial and time commitment for a pharmaceutical company to bring a drug to market is approximately $2 billion and 10 years, respectively. A significant portion of that cost is due to the models in which drugs are tested, as they often lack the ability to accurately predict how a drug will behave within a human patient. These model systems typically consist of either a simple static culture containing a single cell type or an animal model (i.e. mouse). Conventional static cultures are simple model systems that are valued for their ease of use; however, they often fail to capture the complex nature of in vivo physiology.

Abstract

Researchers at Northwestern have developed a fluidic tissue-culture platform that is compatible with laboratory automation hardware that can support multiple connected tissue models. This system is designed to be the same dimensions as conventional cell culture plates and contains a series of interconnected culture modules, pumps, and fluidic channels. This design allows in vitro tissue models to be co-cultured in a way that is more capable of replicating in vivo interactions between different organs/tissues. Whereas current in vitro models contain a single cell/tissue type, tissue models cultured in the platform are linked together via fluidic channels similarly to the way in vivo tissues are linked via the circulatory system. This co-culture format better captures the complex tissue-tissue interactions seen in vivo that are critical to normal physiology. The introduction of fluid flow also exposes tissues to cells to important biological and physical phenomenon, such as fluidic shear stress, and improves waste elimination, which creates healthier in vitro cultures that can be sustained for longer periods of time compared to traditional culture methods. This next-generation technology will enable the creation of in vitro models that will more effectively represent their in vivo counterparts resulting in more efficient research in the area drug development and beyond.

Applications

• Drug discovery and screening
• Disease modeling
• In vitro maturation/fertilization

Advantages

• Automation: The system has been designed to be compatible with currently available laboratory automation hardware
• Tissue format agnostic: Tissue model size and architecture is not a limiting factor

Publications

Xiao S, Coppeta J, Rogers H, et al. (2017) A microfluidic culture model of the human reproductive tract and 28-day menstrual cycle. Nature Communications. 8: 14584.

Featured in various media outlets, including National Geographic, The New York Times, and Popular Science.

IP Status

US Utility Patent Applications have been filed.