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Prof. Dr. Elzbieta Jastrzebska

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Chair of Medical Biotechnology, Faculty of Chemistry, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-661 Warsaw, Poland
Interests: development of the microsystems used in cellular engineering (2D and 3D culture and analysis of carcinoma, heart, and stem cells) and in biotechnology (micro-PCR system); modification of materials, i.e., poly(dimethylsiloxane) used for lab-on-a-chip fabrication

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the most common cause of death around the world. CVDs damage cardiomyocytes (CMs), and as a result, these cells lose their ability to renew. The use of a treatment method is determined based on the type and state of disease. Recently, regenerative medicine based on stem cells (SCs) seems to have had an important role in medicine, especially in cardiology.

To define the proper parameters for cell regeneration and effective therapy, studies under conditions as close as possible to native tissue should be performed. Conventional culture models do not fulfill such requirements. Perfusion lab-on-a-chip systems, mimicking tissue features, seem to be a suitable tool used for cell study. Microsystems used to culture cardiac and stem cells, as well as for the creation of vascularization, stem cell differentiation, and drug toxicity cell study, can be a helpful method to study diseases, especially CVDs.

Original papers focusing on achievements in the study of cardiac, stem, and vascular cells in microscale, new technologies of microsystem fabrication, as well as review reports on recent developments in the field will be considered for publication. This Special Issue entitled "Microsystem for Heart and Stem Cell Processing" is dedicated to biologists, engineers, microfluidic specialists, cell culture experts, cardiologists, and other experts connecting with this research field.

Prof. Dr. Elzbieta Jastrzebska
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Lab-on-a-chip
Heart-on-a-chip
Vascularization
Stem cells
Microfluidic
Cell differentiation
Cardiovascular diseases
Toxicology

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 4882 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Thermoplastic Elastomer (TPE)–Poly(Methyl Methacrylate) (PMMA) Hybrid Devices for Active Pumping PDMS-Free Organ-on-a-Chip Systems

by Mathias Busek, Steffen Nøvik, Aleksandra Aizenshtadt, Mikel Amirola-Martinez, Thomas Combriat, Stefan Grünzner and Stefan Krauss

Biosensors 2021, 11(5), 162; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/bios11050162 - 19 May 2021

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 5973

Abstract

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) has been used in microfluidic systems for years, as it can be easily structured and its flexibility makes it easy to integrate actuators including pneumatic pumps. In addition, the good optical properties of the material are well suited for analytical systems. In addition to its positive aspects, PDMS is well known to adsorb small molecules, which limits its usability when it comes to drug testing, e.g., in organ-on-a-chip (OoC) systems. Therefore, alternatives to PDMS are in high demand. In this study, we use thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) films thermally bonded to laser-cut poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) sheets to build up multilayered microfluidic devices with integrated pneumatic micro-pumps. We present a low-cost manufacturing technology based on a conventional CO₂ laser cutter for structuring, a spin-coating process for TPE film fabrication, and a thermal bonding process using a pneumatic hot-press. UV treatment with an Excimer lamp prior to bonding drastically improves the bonding process. Optimized bonding parameters were characterized by measuring the burst load upon applying pressure and via profilometer-based measurement of channel deformation. Next, flow and long-term stability of the chip layout were measured using microparticle Image Velocimetry (uPIV). Finally, human endothelial cells were seeded in the microchannels to check biocompatibility and flow-directed cell alignment. The presented device is compatible with a real-time live-cell analysis system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microsystem for Heart and Stem Cells Processing)

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14 pages, 2488 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study of Stem Cells Influence on Cardiac Cells Cultured with a Cyanide-P-Trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone in Organ-on-a-Chip System

by Anna Kobuszewska, Dominik Kolodziejek, Michal Wojasinski, Tomasz Ciach, Zbigniew Brzozka and Elzbieta Jastrzebska

Biosensors 2021, 11(5), 131; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/bios11050131 - 23 Apr 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3068

Abstract

Regenerative medicine and stem cells could prove to be an effective solution to the problem of treating heart failure caused by ischemic heart disease. However, further studies on the understanding of the processes which occur during the regeneration of damaged tissue are needed. Microfluidic systems, which provide conditions similar to in vivo, could be useful tools for the development of new therapies using stem cells. We investigated how mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) affect the metabolic activity of cardiac cells (rat cardiomyoblasts and human cardiomyocytes) incubated with a potent uncoupler of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation under microfluidic conditions. A cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone (FCCP) was used to mimic disfunctions of mitochondria of cardiac cells. The study was performed in a microfluidic system integrated with nanofiber mats made of poly-l-lactid acid (PLLA) or polyurethane (PU). The microsystem geometry allows four different cell cultures to be conducted under different conditions (which we called: normal, abnormal—as both a mono- and co-culture). Metabolic activity of the cells, based on the bioluminescence assay, was assessed in the culture’s performed in the microsystem. It was proved that stem cells increased metabolic activity of cardiac cells maintained with FCCP. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microsystem for Heart and Stem Cells Processing)

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