Scientists develop ‘brain-on-a-chip’ prototype

Technology is changing how scientists look at brain injuries. A “brain-on-a-chip” that looks like it came out of a sci-fi adventure movie may eventually show promise for studying the effects of brain injury.

On Oct. 22, Draper Laboratory announced that scientists at its nonprofit research and development laboratory located in Tampa along with the University of South Florida are working to develop a “brain-on-a-chip,” that may one day be used to study neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s or stroke.

A stroke or Alzheimer’s disease is not considered a traumatic brain injury because the term traumatic refers to the cause of the injury being traumatic such as a blast from a war zone, a gunshot, or a car accident, instead of the trauma people feel after being diagnosed with any brain injury. But this research may still be relevant for those who suffer TBI because research has shown that it is a risk factor for both.

It’s interesting that the impact of a small chip could be so far reaching. “Our device is designed to be the most biologically realistic model of brain tissue developed in the lab thus far,” said Anil Achyuta, principal investigator.  “We have the potential to revolutionize how scientists study the effects of drugs, vaccines, and specialized therapies like stem cells on the brain . . . In addition to screening drugs, we could potentially block vascular channels and mimic stroke or atherosclerotic plaque.”

Perhaps, even more intriguing for those with a TBI is that it could one day be used to study TBIs directly. “Furthermore, this platform could eventually be used for neurotoxicology, to study the effects of brain injury like concussions, blast injuries, and implantable medical devices such as in neuroprosthetics.”

The neurovascular unit is made up the specific brain and vascular cells that exchange nutrients, oxygen, and dispose of chemical waste to keep the brain functioning. Neurodegenerative diseases typically involve a dysfunction in the interaction between the brain and the circulatory system.

The “brain-on-a-chip” prototype attempts to mimic the neurovascular unit and represent a biologically realistic model of brain tissue by combining innovations in cellular brain science, tissue engineering, and microfluidics (microminiaturized devices with chambers for the containment and flow of fluids.)

Photo Credit: Draper Laboratory

As part of the research, basic brain cell types and vascular cells from rats were cultured on two specially designed micro-fabricated layers. Eventually, researchers plan on switching from rat embryonic cells to human cells. Their work will be under the umbrella of the Draper’s BIO-MIMETICS program, a DARPA funded project undertaken in collaboration with MIT, which aims to one day combine a networked system of micro-devices into a “human-on-a-chip” for the rapid testing of new drugs and vaccines.

“Severe traumatic brain injury remains a major health-care problem worldwide,” according to the Lancet, Volume 380, Issue 9847, Pages 1088 - 1098, 22 September 2012. “Although major progress has been made in understanding of the pathophysiology [the functional changes] of this injury, this has not yet led to substantial improvements in outcome.”

Hopefully, this new technology will lead to not only better understanding, but also development of new therapies to improve quality of life for those whose lives are catastrophically altered from brain injury.