Immune system-on-chip: study immune cell-vasculature interactions in vitro using multi-electrode-arrays (MEAs)
Master projects/internships - Leuven | Just now
Unravelling immune cell-vasculature interactions in vitro using impedance-based monitoring techniques
Immunotherapy shows great promise in the fight against cancer by leveraging the body’s immune system to target malignant cells. However, developing novel immunotherapies faces challenges due to the failure of animal models to predict human immune responses effectively. As such, alternative in vitro methods incorporating human cells, including organ-on-chips (OoCs), are gaining traction. In the context of immunotherapy, OoCs serve as valuable tools for investigating the migration of immune cells from the bloodstream, across the vascular barrier, to their target sites.
This project aims to study the multistep process of immune cell transendothelial migration using our in-house developed multi-electrode array (MEA). The MEA is equipped with a microfluidic channel to mimic the flow conditions in blood vessels. Impedance monitoring will be used to assess vascular barrier integrity during inflammation and immune cell transendothelial migration.
The student will be trained on culturing endothelial and immune cells, impedance-based cell monitoring, microfluidic chip design and assembly, microscopy, and data analysis.
Type of Project: Thesis; Internship
Master's degree: Master of Bioengineering; Master of Science; Master of Engineering Science
Duration: 6-12 months
Supervisor: Liesbet Lagae
For more information or application, please contact the supervising scientists Ina Carman (ina.carmans@imec.be) and Dries Braeken (dries.braeken@imec.be).