How Organ-on-a-Chip Technology Can Assist in Studying the Role of the Glymphatic System in Neurodegenerative Diseases
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ijms-24-02171-v2.pdf
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1.93 MB
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Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
6f946c60e554f4e977583c3bb342076d
Author(s)
Spitz, Sarah
Ko, Eunkyung
Ertl, Peter
Kamm, Roger D.
Date Issued
January 21, 2023
Publisher
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
Citation
International Journal of Molecular Sciences 24 (3): 2171 (2023)
Version
Final published version
Abstract
The lack of a conventional lymphatic system that permeates throughout the entire human brain has encouraged the identification and study of alternative clearance routes within the cerebrum. In 2012, the concept of the glymphatic system, a perivascular network that fluidically connects the cerebrospinal fluid to the lymphatic vessels within the meninges via the interstitium, emerged. Although its exact mode of action has not yet been fully characterized, the key underlying processes that govern solute transport and waste clearance have been identified. This review briefly describes the perivascular glial-dependent clearance system and elucidates its fundamental role in neurodegenerative diseases. The current knowledge of the glymphatic system is based almost exclusively on animal-based measurements, but these face certain limitations inherent to in vivo experiments. Recent advances in organ-on-a-chip technology are discussed to demonstrate the technology’s ability to provide alternative human-based in vitro research models. Herein, the specific focus is on how current microfluidic-based in vitro models of the neurovascular system and neurodegenerative diseases might be employed to (i) gain a deeper understanding of the role and function of the glymphatic system and (ii) to identify new opportunities for pharmacological intervention.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biological Engineering
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Creative Commons Attribution
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24032171
