Research on the Methods for the Mass Production of Multi-Scale Organs-On-Chips

The success of labs- and organs-on-chips as transformative technologies in the biomedical arena relies on our capacity of solving some current challenges related to their design, modeling, manufacturability, and usability. Among present needs for the industrial scalability and impact promotion of th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Polymers 2018-11, Vol.10 (11), p.1238
Main Authors:	Díaz Lantada, Andrés, Pfleging, Wilhelm, Besser, Heino, Guttmann, Markus, Wissmann, Markus, Plewa, Klaus, Smyrek, Peter, Piotter, Volker, García-Ruíz, Josefa Predestinación
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Additive manufacturing Biomedical engineering Biomedical materials biomedical microdevices Design Design for manufacturability Electroforming Gene expression Growth factors In vitro methods and tests Injection molding labs-on-chips laser materials processing Lasers Lithography Manufacturability Mass production Metastasis micro-injection molding Modelling mold fabrication Organs organs-on-chips Physiology Production methods Prototypes Rapid prototyping Silicon wafers Stem cells Test procedures Thermoplastic resins
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Summary:	The success of labs- and organs-on-chips as transformative technologies in the biomedical arena relies on our capacity of solving some current challenges related to their design, modeling, manufacturability, and usability. Among present needs for the industrial scalability and impact promotion of these bio-devices, their sustainable mass production constitutes a breakthrough for reaching the desired level of repeatability in systematic testing procedures based on labs- and organs-on-chips. The use of adequate biomaterials for cell-culture processes and the achievement of the multi-scale features required, for in vitro modeling the physiological interactions among cells, tissues, and organoids, which prove to be demanding requirements in terms of production. This study presents an innovative synergistic combination of technologies, including: laser stereolithography, laser material processing on micro-scale, electroforming, and micro-injection molding, which enables the rapid creation of multi-scale mold cavities for the industrial production of labs- and organs-on-chips using thermoplastics apt for in vitro testing. The procedure is validated by the design, rapid prototyping, mass production, and preliminary testing with human mesenchymal stem cells of a conceptual multi-organ-on-chip platform, which is conceived for future studies linked to modeling cell-to-cell communication, understanding cell-material interactions, and studying metastatic processes.
ISSN:	2073-4360 2073-4360