Biology subjects

Apostolou, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Apostolou, A..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2021

Qualifying a human Liver-Chip for predictive toxicology: Performance assessment and economic implications

Human organ-on-a-chip (Organ-Chip) technology has the potential to disrupt preclinical drug discovery and improve success in drug development pipelines as it can recapitulate organ-level pathophysiology and clinical responses. The Innovation and Quality (IQ) consortium formed by multiple pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to confront this challenge has published guidelines that define criteria for qualifying preclinical models, however, systematic and quantitative evaluation of the predictive value of Organ-Chips has not yet been reported. Here, 870 Liver-Chips were analyzed to determine their ability to predict drug-induced liver injury (DILI) caused by small molecules identified as benchmarks by the IQ consortium. The Liver-Chip met the qualification guidelines across a blinded set of 27 known hepatotoxic and non-toxic drugs with a sensitivity of 87% and a specificity of 100%. A computational economic value analysis suggests that with this performance the Liver-Chip could generate $3 billion annually for the pharmaceutical industry due to increased R&D productivity.

pharmacology and toxicology↗

bioRxiv2020

A Micro-engineered Human Colon Intestine-Chip Platform to Study Leaky Barrier

The intestinal epithelial barrier supports the symbiotic relationship between the microbiota colonizing the intestinal epithelium and the host immune system to maintain homeostasis. Leaky barrier is increasingly recognized as part of the pathogenesis of a number of chronic conditions in addition to inflammatory and infectious diseases. As our understanding on the regulation of the barrier remains limited, effective therapeutic targeting for the compromised barrier is still an unmet need. Here we combined advancements on the organoids and Organ-on-Chip technologies to establish a micro-engineered Colon Intestine-Chip for studying development and regulation of the human intestinal barrier. Our data demonstrate the significance of the endothelium in co-culture with the epithelial cells within a tissue-relevant microenvironment for the establishment of a tight epithelial barrier of polarized cells. Pathway analysis of the RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq), revealed significant upregulation of mechanisms relevant to the maturation of the intestinal epithelium in organoid-derived epithelial cells in co-culture with endothelium as compared to organoids maintained in suspension. We provide evidence that the Colon Intestine-Chip platform responds to interferon gamma (IFN{gamma}), a prototype cytokine utilized to model inflammation-induced barrier disruption, by induction of apoptosis and reorganization of the apical junctional complexes as shown with other systems. We also describe the mechanism of action of interleukin 22 (IL-22) on mature, organoid-derived intestinal epithelial cells that is consistent with barrier disruption. Overall we propose the Colon Intestine-Chip as a promising human organoid-derived platform to decipher mechanisms driving the development of leaky gut in patients and enable their translation for this unmet medical need.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2019

Organoid-derived Duodenum Intestine-Chip for preclinical drug assessment in a human relevant system

Induction of intestinal drug metabolizing enzymes can complicate the development of new drugs, owing to potential to cause drug-drug interactions (DDIs) leading to changes in pharmacokinetics, safety and efficacy. The development of a human relevant model of the adult intestine that accurately predicts CYP450 induction could help address this challenge as species differences preclude extrapolation from animals. Here, we combined organoids and Organ-Chip technology to create a human Duodenum Intestine-Chip that emulates intestinal tissue architecture and functions, that are relevant for the study of drug transport, metabolism, and DDI. Duodenum Intestine-Chip demonstrates the polarized cell architecture, intestinal barrier function, presence of specialized cell subpopulations, and in vivo-relevant expression, localization, and function of major intestinal drug transporters. Notably, in comparison to Caco-2, it displays improved CYP3A4 expression and induction capability. This model could enable improved in vitro to in vivo extrapolation for better predictions of human pharmacokinetics and risk of DDIs.

cell biology↗