3D bioprinted model of the blood-brain-barries to study the development of Alzheimer´s s disease

• Grant number: 20/07402-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2020
• End date: September 30, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Morphology - Cytology and Cell Biology
• Principal Investigator: Marimélia Aparecida Porcionatto
• Grantee: Jessica Smelstein
• Host Institution: Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 18/12605-8 - Development of brain-on-a-chip microplataforms for in vitro modeling of the central nervous system, AP.TEM

Abstract

The concept of organ-on-a-chip comprises different models or reproduction of tissues and organs in vitro form the combination of cells, and biocompatible has become an alternative for in vivo studies. The world initiatives to reduce the number of lab animals used in experimental research were the start, although the scientific community soon realized that organs-on-a-chip have broader potential uses, such as organ development and drug testing. Platforms that model or mimic central nervous system (CNS), known as brain-on-a-chip, are composed of neural stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), cultured on biocompatible material or in more complex systems with a fluid circulation that mimic blood circulation and the blood-brain-barrier (BBB), as well as the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The platforms to study the CNS in vitro allow the study of cellular and molecular mechanisms of the development and progression of neurodegenerative disorders and tests of drugs to treat those diseases. In this scenario, the objective of this project is to produce a model of the BBB using 3D bioprinting to study cellular and molecular mechanisms of the physiopathology of diseases that affect the CNS, in particular, the Alzheimer's Disease. (AU)