13. Project

Human immunocompetent WAT-Liver-on-a-chip system with integrated sensors

The involvement of white adipose tissue (WAT) in storage and metabolisation of drug-metabolites is often neglected in preclinical in vitro drug screening. WAT has been shown to sequester many hydrophobic drugs and to have a significant impact on pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drug metabolites. WAT interacts with other organs via paracrine signals, fatty acid release, and effects of metabolite sequestration. Thus, WAT is a critical component in the regulation of human metabolism. In this project, we will optimize and apply a novel Organ-on-a-chip system, which integrates immune cells in white adipose tissue and features integrated sensors for on-line in situ analysis. The developed WAT-on-a-chip will then be connected with a liver-on-a-chip system and utilized for experiments towards bioenergetic validation.