For the monitoring of many pathologies, it is essential to develop quantitative assays to probe complex biological processes from the molecular to the organ scale. This is particularly true for rapidly progressing glomerulonephritis (RPGN) and segmental and focal hyalinosis (SFH), which can cause dedifferentiation and uncontrolled migration of specialized cells through a complex interplay between different molecular cues. The lack of devices to probe cellular and molecular responses in a relevant in-vitro environment has so far hindered the mechanistic understanding of this phenomenon.
Based on the microsystem already developed in the laboratory for the co-culture of renal cells recapitulating a renal glomerulus, I developed a mechanical actuation system that allows the recirculation of the culture medium in the system in a permanent manner.
The mechanical actuation system was realized from parts designed and 3D printed in the laboratory as well as an integrated electronic control system based on arduino and servo-motors. The system will have to satisfy certain requirements; portability, waterproofness and size related to the use in sterile cell culture environment.
