Easy accessible cell models of the intestinal epithelium remains challenging often missing essential aspects, such as the peristaltic motion or controlled access to the apical and basal membrane among others. Lab on a chip approaches offer unique opportunities in this context. Especially paper-based chips have attracted considerable interest due to their accessibility, low cost, their 3D resemblance to cell tissues and their biocompatibility, as well as being an easy material to chemically or biologically modify. The current effort describes the development of a paper chip as a floating scaffold for co-culture of endothelial and goblet cells towards the creation of a free-standing intestinal cell model. The ideal growth conditions on paper for CaCo2 and HT29-MTX-E12 cells were identified depending on chip size, coating material, culture time and paper thickness. Poly(L lysine) coated paper chips were the most suitable environment to result in a dense cell monolayer after 9 days. Hybrid vesicles (HVs) consisting of phospholipids and the amphiphilic block copolymer poly(cholesteryl methacrylate) block poly(2 carboxyethyl acrylate) were assembled. These HVs preserved their structural integrity in cell media and they were able to cross the paper chips intact. Further, they were used as a model carrier to compare their interaction with the cells on the paper chip and cells grown on standard 96 well plates focusing on cell viability, uptake efficacy and intracellular fate. Finally, the ability of the cells cultured on the paper chip to internalize the HVs was explored depending on the formed mucus layer. Taken together, we demonstrated that CaCo2 cells and HT29-MTX-E12 cells could be culture on a paper chip, offering an adaptable alternative to transwell plates as an intestinal cell model.

Intestinal cell model based on a paper chip

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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