2024.05.29 Human cervix modeled in microfluidic organ chip fills key women's health gap

Manuscript title: Mucus production, host-microbiome interactions, hormone sensitivity, and innate immune responses modeled in human cervix chips Journal: Nature Communications Publication date: 5/29/2024 Cervix Chip Illustration: The team modeled the cervical wall by growing human cervical epithelial cells in one of two parallel channels running through a microfluidic device the size of a USB memory stick and cervical fibroblast cells in the adjacent channel. The channels are separated by a porous membrane which allows the two cell types to communicate similarly as in a woman’s body. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University Healthy vs dysbiotic cervix chip: Upon populating the cervix chip with Gardnerella vaginalis bacteria, which are a cause of bacterial vaginosis, the epithelium’s barrier functions and mucus layer became severely compromised on a resulting dysbiotic Cervix Chip (bottom). The overall thickness of the mucus layer was decreased and its quality deteriorated, compared to mucus produced in a healthy Cervix Chip (top) Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University