Microfluidic vessel-on-chip platform for investigation of cellular defects in venous malformations and responses to various shear stress and flow conditions
Mohammadhassan Ansarizadeh, Hoang-Tuan Nguyen, Bojana Lazovic, Jere Kettunen, Laknee De Silva, Ragul Sivakumar, Pauliina Junttila, S Rissanen, Ryan Hicks, Prateek Singh, Lauri Eklund
Abstract
expressing ECs showed differential cellular responses to flow and WSS in terms of cell shape elongation, orientation of F-actin, and Golgi polarization, indicating altered mechanosensory or mechanotransduction signaling pathways in the presence of the VM causative mutation. The data also revealed significant differences in how the primary and iPSC-derived iECs responded to flow. As a conclusion, the developed microfluidic platform allowed simulation of multiple flow conditions in a scalable and pumpless format. The design made it a desirable tool for studying different EC types as well as cellular changes in vascular disease. The platform should offer new opportunities for biomechanical research by providing a controlled environment to analyze the flow-dependent mechanosensory pathways in ECs.