Fluid handling for organ-on-a-chip systems
Continuous feeding of sensitive cell cultures with flow rates from 30 µl/min
Organ-on-a-chip systems (also known as biochips) enable the simulation of human organ functions outside the body. They complement animal testing and provide a promising alternative for many applications. Human cells are cultured in microfluidic channels and continuously supplied with cell culture medium. This allows physiological processes to be studied under controlled conditions while testing pharmaceuticals, chemicals and cosmetic ingredients in a human-relevant environment.
To obtain reproducible experimental results, sensitive cells must be supplied with cell culture medium continuously and uniformly. Even minor fluctuations in flow rate can influence cell behavior and compromise the reliability of the experimental results.
A functional module combining a pump and valve (P-V module) provides the continuous and reproducible fluid handling required to supply cell culture medium to organ-on-a-chip systems.
What are the fluid handling requirements for feeding organ-on-a-chip systems?
The continuous feeding of cell cultures requires a constant and extremely low-pulsation flow rate. At the same time, sensitive cells must be supplied with nutrients as gently as possible to preserve their functionality and viability.
The fluid handling solution must therefore:
- deliver cell culture medium continuously and reproducibly
- minimize shear stress in the microfluidic system
- provide an extremely low-pulsation flow rate
- protect the fluid handling system from contamination without retaining nutrients relevant to cell culture
- integrate easily into microfluidic experimental systems
How is fluid handling solution implemented?
The solution consists of a functional module including a mounting block, an mzr-2921X1 micro annular gear pump from the low-pressure series and an integrated valve. The fluid handling solution is complemented by a separate inlet filter.
The size 29 micro annular gear pump features sufficiently large pumping chambers to achieve the required flow rate at low rotational speeds. As a result, cells in the microfluidic channels on the chip are exposed to extremely low shear forces.
The inlet filter, with a filter fineness of at least 40 µm, protects the fluid handling system from contamination without retaining medium components that are essential for cell culture.
The combination of the micro annular gear pump, valve and inlet filter provides a continuous flow rate and creates stable conditions for feeding the cell cultures throughout the entire experiment. Flow rates starting at 30 µl/min and dosing volumes starting at 0.5 µl are achieved.
What are the benefits of the fluid handling solution for organ-on-a-chip systems?
The combination of the P-V module and inlet filter offers several advantages:
- continuous and reproducible supply of cell culture medium
- gentle transport of sensitive medium components through large pumping chambers and low rotational speeds
- extremely low-pulsation flow rate for stable experimental conditions
- protection of the fluid handling system by an inlet filter with a filter fineness of at least 40 µm
- easy integration into microfluidic experimental systems
This fluid handling solution creates reproducible experimental conditions for organ-on-a-chip systems and supports applications in pharmaceutical research, drug development and toxicity testing.