Blood vessels in tissues are of great importance for the diffusion of nutrients and the migration of immune cells. This is also important for the reproduction of organ-like systems on microchips. So far, the models have often relied on external tubes and pumps to create perfusion, and require complex experimental setups, making them extremely difficult to reproduce. In the current research work, 3D printing was combined with multi-organ chip technology to create a connective tissue matrix of fibroblasts on the chip that was equipped with a vessel consisting of endothel cells.

Initially, dissolvable structures were integrated into a collagen/fibrin hydrogel on an organ chip. The dissolution of these structures created hollow channels that were colonized with endothelial cells. The endothelial cells grew on the channel walls and formed a functional vessel on the chip that could be perfused. Fluid flowed through the vessels and the endothelial cells exhibited the permeability and barrier properties of a normal blood vessel.To mimic an inflammatory vascular situation more closely, human monocytes circulated through the vessel and their differentiation into macrophages and migration through the endothelium into the hydrogel was observed. The goal is to develop an immunocompetent tissue model with blood vessels.

The work serves as a basis for the development of the next generation of vascularized, immunocompetent human organ models, including research into healthy and diseased vessels.

Original publication:
Jonas Jäger, Phil Berger, Andrew I. Morrison, Hendrik Erfurth, Maria Thon, Eva-Maria Dehne, Susan Gibbs & Jasper J. Koning (2025). A Sacrificial 3D Printed Vessel-on-Chip Demonstrates a Versatile Approach to Model Connective Tissue Pathology. bioRxiv 2025.02.06.636821; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.02.06.636821