Penn researchers micro-engineer chip that models human bone marrow

Researchers from the School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Perelman School of Medicine, along with the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, have developed a bioengineered chip that replicates the environment of human bone marrow for cancer treatment research.

The model, a plastic chip filled with human blood stem cells and support cells interacting in a hydrogel, resembles the process of bone marrow development in human embryos. In doing so, the model enables researchers to build living human marrow which can be released into culture media flowing in engineered capillary blood vessels. The findings of the research are published in the peer-reviewed journal, Cell Stem Cell. 

"Working on this project has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my research career," Bioengineering professor and the study's senior author, Dan Huh, told Penn Engineering Today. "I find it truly exciting that by using this system, we are now able to emulate some of the most essential features of the human marrow and our immune system."

Bone marrow produces red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets, all necessary for human survival. Bone marrow donations, a common treatment for people diagnosed with blood cancers, and a necessity for cell therapy research, are linked to risks that often deter volunteers, creating a shortage of bone marrow donors. 

The alternative, using animal bone marrow, is less preferable since these studies often fail to replicate the complexities of human bone marrow. 

The discovery of this bone marrow model follows a recent breakthrough in creating blood stem cells closely resembling those in the human body by researchers at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Melbourne in September of 2024. 

While this discovery aimed to create stem cells that could ultimately function as a replacement bone marrow source for donations, the findings of the Engineering School, the Medical School, and CHOP aim to address the need for bone marrow in research. 

The bone marrow model can be used to simulate and study the effects of medical treatments for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy or radiation, which can cause damage to the bone marrow. 

Beyond cancer research, this technology may impact drug development if used to test new cancer treatments for bone marrow toxicity before moving to human trials. The chip may also contribute to space research by helping scientists understand how prolonged radiation exposure affects the immune system. The chip might also have the potential to help researchers study the biological conditions necessary for the maintenance of hematopoietic stem cells isolated from human donors. 

In March 2022, researcher Andrei Georgescu, a former doctoral student in Huh’s lab, co-founded a startup focused on chip innovations called Vivodyne. The team is now exploring how this model can be used to improve drug testing, disease modeling, and regenerative medicine.

The development follows several of the Medical School's breakthroughs in cancer treatment with CAR T-cell therapy. 

By utilizing the power of the body’s own immune system, CAR T-cell therapy aims to help patients for whom traditional treatments have been ineffective. This therapy is currently approved to treat leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma, with researchers working to expand its application to other cancers and diseases.