Investigation of endothelial growth using a sensors-integrated microfluidic system to simulate physiological barriers

• Main Authors: Rajabi Taleieh, Ahrens Ralf, Huck Volker, März Martin, Gantenbein Hanna, Schneider Stefan W., Schroten Horst, Guber Andreas E.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: De Gruyter 2015-09-01
• Series: Current Directions in Biomedical Engineering
• Subjects: physiological barriers; endothelial cells; impedance measurements
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1515/cdbme-2015-0004
• ISSN: 2364-5504

In this paper we present a microfluidic system based on transparent biocompatible polymers with a porous membrane as substrate for various cell types which allows the simulation of various physiological barriers under continuous laminar flow conditions at distinct tunable shear rates. Besides live cell and fluorescence microscopy, integrated electrodes enable the investigation of the permeability and barrier function of the cell layer as well as their interaction with external manipulations using the Electric Cell-substrate Impedance Sensing (ECIS) method.