Alkhadrawi Hassan, Dese Kokeb, Panchal Dhruvi M, Pueschel Alexander R, Freshwater Kasey A, Stewart Amanda, Henderson Haleigh, Elkins Michael, Dave Raj T, Wilson Hunter, Bennewitz John W, Bennewitz Margaret F
Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.
Animal Models and Imaging Facility, School of Medicine, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.
AIChE J. 2024 Dec;70(12). doi: 10.1002/aic.18638. Epub 2024 Nov 5.
Conventional testing of novel contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) involves cell and animal studies. However, 2D cultures lack dynamic flow and MRI is limited by regulatory approval of long-term anesthesia use. Microfluidic tumor models (MTMs) offer a cost-effective, reproducible, and high throughput platform for bridging cell and animal models. Yet, MRI of microfluidic devices is challenging, due to small fluid volumes generating low sensitivity. For the first time, an MRI of MTMs was performed at low field strength (1 T) using conventional imaging equipment without microcoils. To enable longitudinal MRI, we developed (1) CHAMP-3 (controlled heating apparatus for microfluidics and portability) which heats MTMs during MRI scans and (2) an MRI-compatible temperature monitoring system. CHAMP-3 maintained chip surface temperature at ~37°C and the media inside at ~35.5°C. Enhanced T-weighted MRI contrast was achieved in 3D MTMs with free manganese (Mn) solutions and Mn labeled tumor cells.
新型磁共振成像（MRI）造影剂的传统测试涉及细胞和动物研究。然而，二维培养缺乏动态流动，且MRI受长期麻醉使用的监管批准限制。微流控肿瘤模型（MTM）为连接细胞和动物模型提供了一个经济高效、可重复且高通量的平台。然而，微流控设备的MRI具有挑战性，因为小体积流体产生的灵敏度较低。首次使用常规成像设备在低场强（1 T）下对MTM进行MRI检查，无需微线圈。为了实现纵向MRI，我们开发了（1）CHAMP-3（用于微流控和便携性的可控加热装置），它在MRI扫描期间加热MTM，以及（2）一种与MRI兼容的温度监测系统。CHAMP-3将芯片表面温度维持在约37°C，内部介质温度维持在约35.5°C。在含有游离锰（Mn）溶液和Mn标记肿瘤细胞的三维MTM中实现了增强的T加权MRI对比度。
