Engineering Solutions for Representative Models of the Gastrointestinal Human-Microbe Interface

Engineering

Frederic Zenhausern¹  Paul Wilmes²  Joanna Baginska²  Joëlle V. Fritz²  Marc Mac Giolla Eain²  Kacy Greenhalgh² 

[1] Center for Applied Nanobioscience and Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA;Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, L 4362, Luxembourg;

关键词: Microbiome;    Microfluidics;    Organ-on-a-chip;    HuMiX;   

DOI  :  10.1016/J.ENG.2017.01.011

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Host-microbe interactions at the gastrointestinal interface have emerged as a key component in the governance of human health and disease. Advances in micro-physiological systems are providing researchers with unprecedented access and insights into this complex relationship. These systems combine the benefits of microengineering, microfluidics, and cell culture in a bid to recreate the environmental conditions prevalent in the human gut. Here we present the human-microbial cross talk (HuMiX) platform, one such system that leverages this multidisciplinary approach to provide a representative in vitro model of the human gastrointestinal interface. HuMiX presents a novel and robust means to study the molecular interactions at the host-microbe interface. We summarize our proof-of-concept results obtained using the platform and highlight its potential to greatly enhance our understanding of host-microbe interactions with a potential to greatly impact the pharmaceutical, food, nutrition, and healthcare industries in the future. A number of key questions and challenges facing these technologies are also discussed.

【 授权许可】

Unknown