Timothy Smith

Microfluidics system for Pulmonary artery on a chip

PAH and organ on chips:

Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension is a complex and incurable multi-factorial disease that is often fatal. As knowledge of the mechanisms of the condition increases, more treatments can be obtained. Organ on chips are evolving to become a powerful tool for gaining insight into organ functionality and connected diseases for treatment applications. This is largely due to the ability to control conditions with microfluidic techniques and regulate the conditions based on embedded sensor readings. PAH progression is highly influenced by hemodynamics, which in the case of smaller pulmonary arteries is impossible to measure without the use of computational modelling. The aim of this project is to fabricate a PAH on a chip system that sets and regulates microfluidic conditions to match physiological hemodynamic conditions for all stages of remodelling.

PAH system goals:

The full potential of organ on chips have yet to be exploited due to the failure to match in vivo conditions chemically (concentration gradients and signals), biologically (All three layers and cell types) and mechanically (pressure, shear stress, material properties, and shape) resulting in relatively short lifespans of the organ on chips. The fabrication of pulmonary artery on chip modules with physiologically relevant structure; the integration of MEMS sensors in tandem with live imaging microscopy to monitor the cells and their local environmental conditions; as well as an incubator to regulate these conditions should increase the lifespan of the in vitro cells. Moreover, they will allow for more comprehensive and accurate results that can be quantitatively compared with in vivo results which will allow for greater models to be developed to better understand, diagnose and treat PAH.

Mini-bio

PhD in Chemistry (currently) under the supervision of Prof. Joshua Edel and Dr. Beata Wojciak-Stothard – Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London

MEng Bioengineering – Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London