This Graduate Seminar talk will be hosted by the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering. 

Ashutosh Agarwal 
Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering
Associate Director, Macdonald Foundation Biomedical Nanotechnology Institute
University of Miami

Abstract:  We report the design and fabrication of robust fluidic platforms that are optimal for culturing and interrogating 3D organoid cultures. The optimized design of convective fluid flows, use of bio-inert and non-absorbent materials, reversible assembly of the platform, manual access for loading and unloading of cultures, and straightforward integration with commercial imaging and fluid handling systems are major improvements over conventional PDMS-based low volume microfluidics. The platform has been used for perfusion interrogation of (1) human pancreatic islets, and (2) engineered spheroid cultures that mimic the metastatic niche of the bone marrow... more