Development of Placenta-on-Chip in India
The placenta, an often overlooked yet crucial organ, serves as the lifeline for the fetus during pregnancy by delivering oxygen and nutrients, removing waste, and producing essential pregnancy hormones. Despite its importance, its complex nature has made it difficult to study directly during pregnancy.
Placenta-on-Chip Technology
- Researchers from ICMR-National Institute for Research on Women's Health (ICMR-NIRWoH), along with IIT Bombay, developed a placenta-on-chip platform.
- Published in Biofabrication, this study introduces a microphysiological system that mimics the maternal-fetal interface.
- The chip reproduces key functionalities of the placenta such as hormone production, nutrient transfer, and waste exchange.
- It effectively models conditions like gestational diabetes, showing promise for studying pregnancy complications and how medicines interact with the placental barrier.
Design and Adoption
- Unlike many existing systems, the Indian platform is designed to be simple, scalable, and compatible with conventional laboratory setups.
- Led by Professor Abhijit Majumder, the engineering design and fabrication emphasize ease of integration into standard labs to facilitate wider research adoption.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration
- The project is a collaboration between engineers and biomedical scientists incorporating reproductive biology, microengineering, and cell biology.
- According to Dr. Sourav Mukherjee, such teamwork is essential for developing advanced human-relevant models that may reduce dependence on animal studies.
Impacts and Future Prospects
- Advanced human-cell-based systems like the placenta-on-chip could help evaluate drug safety during pregnancy and provide insights into conditions like fetal growth restriction and pre-eclampsia.
- Director Dr. Geetanjali Sachdeva highlights that the work aligns with global efforts to create predictive alternatives to animal experimentation, enhancing India's biomedical innovation capabilities.
