- This event has passed.
Thesis Defence: Establishing a 3D vascuarized tri-culture model of the human airways via a digital light processing bioprinter
September 24 at 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Sakshi Phogat, supervised by Dr. Emmanuel T. Osei, will defend their thesis titled “Establishing a 3D vascuarized tri-culture model of the human airways via a digital light processing bioprinter” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Biology.
An abstract for Sakshi Phogat’s thesis is included below.
Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Registration is not required for in person defences.
ABSTRACT
The increased incidence of chronic respiratory diseases globally without the accompanying drug discovery and development has resulted in an increased demand for in vitro models closely mimicking the in vivo lung environment. However, the focus so far has mainly been on developing simple co-culture models to study cellular crosstalk between epithelial, fibroblast or immune cells. Interestingly, pulmonary vasculature, the main player in respiratory diseases is not accounted for. To bridge this knowledge gap, the present study utilized digital light processing bioprinting (DLP) to establish a three-dimensional (3D) vascularized triculture model to closely mimic the complex in vivo environment of the human airways. The triculture airway model was established using a unique combination of photopolymerizable bioinks mixed with MRC5 human lung fibroblasts and bioprinted into a monolithic structure with patterned lumens after which EA.hy926 human endothelial cells were seeded in the lumen coated with basement membrane proteins and flipped every 15 minutes for 4 hours. After this 1HAEo- airway epithelial cells were seeded on top of the model while a specialized IMcoMET peristaltic pump was used to establish fluid to endothelialize the lumens. ICC analysis demonstrated intact apical epithelial and luminal endothelial layers shown by junctional protein (e-cadherin) staining. Lung fibroblasts remained spindle-shaped with dendritic extensions as demonstrated by F-actin staining. Viability analysis with propidium iodide staining demonstrated 80-90% cell viability. The present study successfully fabricated, engineered and characterized a 3D vascularized tri-culture model closely mimicking human airways using DLP bioprinting. This will potentially enable the discovery of novel mechanisms and therapeutic targets for respiratory diseases.
