All-in-one pressure, flow control, and imaging for culturing and monitoring lymphatic microphysiologic system

LymphaTech seeks to develop a closed-loop, feedback-controlled perfusion and pressure system for applying and controlling dynamic wall-shear stress, interstitial flow, and/or strain on lymphatic vasculature networks with integrated imaging. While mechanically driven growth processes are essential to the adaptation of lymphatic structures, as might occur at the onset of lymphatic pathologies, and yet, our knowledge of mechanisms and remodeling in lymphatics and the consequence of these adaptation to function is largely unknown. A variety of customized, niche devices have been developed by different labs, but these approaches are not prevalent within the larger research community, and more importantly, the pharmaceutical industry and clinics that specialize in treating lymphatic disease have not had access to potential lymphatic physiologic microsystems. This project aims to develop a prototype that will utilize both pressure and flow sensors to dynamically modulate the mechanical environment of lymphatic endothelial cells and/or lymphatic muscle cells and will be adaptable to any tissue culture platform.