A microphysiological system for studying human bone biology under simultaneous control of oxygen tension and mechanical loading
Julia Scheinpflug, Chris Tina Höfer, Sarah S. Schmerbeck, Matthias Steinfath, Jennifer Doka, Yonatan A. Tesfahunegn, Norman Violet, Kostja Renko, Konrad Gulich, Thilo John, Marlon R. Schneider, Elisa Wistorf, Gilbert Schönfelder, Frank Schulze
Abstract
bone formation. Primary human osteoblasts (OBs), which are the key players during this process, were seeded onto type I collagen scaffolds and cultured in the MPS. We could not only monitor cell viability and metabolism of OBs under varied physicochemical conditions, but also visualise the mineralisation of the extracellular matrix. In summary, we present a MPS that uniquely combines the independent control of physicochemical parameters and allows investigation of their influence on bone biology. We consider our MPS highly valuable to gain deeper insights into (patho-)physiological processes of bone formation in the future.