Recent technological advances in lab-on-a-chip for bone remodeling

Abstract

Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) is a three-dimensional cell culture platform with a microfluidic flow that biomimics the physiological system of various organs. LOC emerged as a future replacement technology for in vitro cell-based models and in vivo animal models, gaining popularity in the field of physiology, pharmacology, and biology. Nowadays, sensors are incorporated into the LOC system to monitor real-time parameters of the cell and its microenvironment in response to biophysical and/or biochemical stimuli and maturation. A considerable amount of studies has been conducted to detect the mechanical, physical, electrical, and metabolic parameters of engineered organs. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive insight into how the biosensor-implemented LOC platform can be utilized for the analysis of tissue recapitulating systems with a focus on bone remodeling. We describe chip design, basic principles of sensors, and ongoing recent efforts to perform in-line analysis of engineered organoids. This review also presents various imaging techniques used as analytical tools for visualizing LOC.

Keywords

• Lab-on-a-chip
• Biosensors
• 3D cell culture
• Microfluidics
• Imaging techniques
• Bone-on-a-chip