Multi-Organ Chip Developed To Detect Interaction Between Nanoparticles and Lung Cells; This New Nanotechnology May Affect the Liver [Study]

Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine or ITEM and the Fraunhofer Institute for Algorithms and Scientific Computing SCAI have collaborated with TU Berlin and its spin-off organization TissUse GmbH on a project called "NanoINHAL" to examine the effect of nanoparticles on the human body.

As a Phys.org report specified, the questions: What will happen when nanoparticles emitted by, for instance, a laser printer, is breathed in; and if the nanoparticles impair the respiratory tract, or possibly, other organs, arise. To find answers to the questions, Fraunhofer researchers have developed an exposure device called "Nano-Cube.

The integrated multi-organ chip of the Nanocube set up in the laboratory of the Technical University of Berlin, and by its spin-off organization, TissUse, detects interaction between nanoparticles and lung cells, the nanoparticle uptake into the bloodstream, and probable effects on the liver.

Nanoparticles Produced

Having a laser printer right beside the workstation is practical. There is the risk these machines, just like 3D printers, could emit aerosols during operation, containing, among other things, nanoparticles.

These are particles that are between one and one hundred nanometers in size. To compare, a single hair is approximately 60,000 to 80,000 nanometers thick.

Nanoparticles are also being produced by passing road vehicles, for instance, through the abrasion of tires.

As yet, though, little is known about how the particles affect the human body when they are breathed into the lungs.

Until now, a related News-Medical.net report specified the only way to investigate this would have been through animal testing.

Furthermore, large quantities of samples of the relevant aerosol would need to be collected at a large expense.

Biological Effect of Aerosols Analyzed

According to Dr. Tanja Hansen, Group Manager at Fraunhofer ITEM, they can analyze the aerosols' biological effects directly and easily using in vitro method and minus animal testing.

A combination of two existing technologies has made this chip possible. These include the multi-organ chip called Hummic Chip3 from TU Berlin, its spin-off organization known as TissUse, and the PRIT ExpoCube, which Fraunhofer ITEM developed.

The Humimic Chip3 is a chip with a size similar to a standard laboratory slide that measures 76 x 26 millimeters. Tissue cultures miniaturized 100,000-fold can be placed on it, with nutrient solutions supplied by micropumps to the tissue cultures.

In this manner, for instance, tissue samples of the lung and liver, as well as their interaction with nanoparticles, can be artificially recreated.

Possible Effects on Other Organs Like the Liver

The nanoparticles flow through misconduct, from which many branches lead downward to conduct the ar and nanoparticles to the multi-organ chips.

Hansen explained that if lung cells are exposed to the air-liquid interface, many parameters come into play, like temperature, aerosol flow, and the flow of the culture medium in the chip. This makes experiments of this kind quite complicated.

Currently, according to a similar ForeignAfffairs.co.nz., the system is undergoing further optimization. At the end of the project, the combination of multi-organ chip and NanoCube will facilitate detailed aerosol research in vitro.

Only then will it be possible to examine the direct effect of the possibly harmful nanoparticles on the respiratory tract and, at the same time, probable impacts on other organs like the liver.

Related information about multi-organ chips is shown on Edelweiss Connect, Switzerland's YouTube video below:

Check out more news and information on Nanoparticles in Science Times.