Convenient rapid prototyping microphysiological niche for mimicking liver native basement membrane: Liver sinusoid on a chip

• Published in: Colloids and surfaces, B, Biointerfaces B, Biointerfaces, 2025-01, Vol.245, p.114292, Article 114292
• Main Authors: Ebrahimi, Aliakbar, Ghorbanpoor, Hamed, Apaydın, Elif, Demir Cevizlidere, Bahar, Özel, Ceren, Tüfekçioğlu, Emre, Koç, Yücel, Topal, Ahmet Emin, Tomsuk, Özlem, Güleç, Kadri, Abdullayeva, Nuran, Kaya, Murat, Ghorbani, Aynaz, Şengel, Tayfun, Benzait, Zineb, Uysal, Onur, Eker Sarıboyacı, Ayla, Doğan Güzel, Fatma, Singh, Hemant, Hassan, Shabir, Ankara, Hüseyin, Pat, Suat, Atalay, Eray, Avci, Huseyin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Apoptosis; Basement Membrane - metabolism; Cell Survival; Co-culture; EA.HY926; Gelatin - chemistry; Hep G2 Cells; HepG2; Humans; Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; Liver - cytology; Liver - metabolism; Liver-on-a-chip; Polycarboxylate Cement - chemistry; Polyethylene Terephthalates - chemistry; Space of disse; Spin coating; Surface Properties
• ISSN: 0927-7765; 1873-4367; 1873-4367
• DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2024.114292

Liver is responsible for the metabolization processes of up to 90 % of compounds and toxins in the body. Therefore liver-on-a-chip systems, as an in vitro promising cell culture platform, have great importance for fundamental science and drug development. In most of the liver-on-a-chip studies, seeding cells on both sides of a porous membrane, which represents the basement membrane, fail to resemble the native characteristics of biochemical, biophysical, and mechanical properties. In this study, polycarbonate (PC) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) membranes were coated with gelatin to address this issue by accurately mimicking the native basement membrane present in the space of Disse. Various coating methods were used, including doctor blade, gel micro-injection, electrospinning, and spin coating. Spin coating was demonstrated to be the most effective technique owing to the ability to produce thin gel thickness with desirable surface roughness for cell interactions on both sides of the membrane. HepG2 and EA.HY926 cells were seeded on the upper and bottom sides of the gelatin-coated PET membrane and cultured on-chip for 7 days. Cell viability increased from 90 % to 95 %, while apoptotic index decreased. Albumin secretion notably rose between days 1–7 and 4–7, while GST-α secretion decreased from day 1 to day 7. In conclusion, the optimized spin coating process reported here can effectively modify the membranes to better mimic the native basement membrane niche characteristics. [Display omitted] •Various coating methods were tested for coating porous membranes to mimic the liver's native basement membrane.•Spin coating was found to be the most effective membrane coating method with desirable gel thickness and surface roughness for cell interactions.•HepG2 and EAHY926 cells on gelatin-coated PET membrane increase viability and albumin and decrease apoptotic index and GST-α.•The spin coating method effectively modifies the membranes to mimic liver native basement membrane niche characteristics.