Fig. 1: Design of the iGLC platform to recapitulate NAFLD. | Communications Biology

Fig. 1: Design of the iGLC platform to recapitulate NAFLD.

From: Integrated-gut-liver-on-a-chip platform as an in vitro human model of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Fig. 1

a Schematic for NAFLD progression by FFAs via the GLA. b Photograph of an iGLC platform. The perfusion and control layers are colored in pink and blue, respectively. c Illustration of the iGLC platform used for NAFLD. Two cell culture chambers are used for gut cells (Caco-2) and hepatocytes (HepG2) and are linked via a microfluidic channel with a micropump to achieve closed medium circulation of FFAs. Within the microvalves, each cell culture chamber is individually accessible without the risk of cross-contamination. Thus, this setup allows the inter-tissue interaction to be evaluated. A–A’ shows the cross-section of the cell culture chambers for the Caco-2 gut and HepG2 liver cells. B–B’ shows the cross-sectional view of the open and closed integrated microvalves. Because of the elastic PDMS membrane, the normally open valve is closed by applying higher pressure to the microfluidic channel in the control layer.

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