Neural Microtissues
Re-thinking the future of drug discovery and disease modeling
​
Recapitulating the brain in the lab is no easy task, especially since it involves complex vasculature and the Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB). Frontier Bio can reproduce these complexities.
Chip Format
NeuroTraX™: Blood-Brain-Barrier Chip
The Neuro-Vascular-Unit (NVU) is the building block of the brain made of neurons, endothelial cells, astrocytes, pericytes, and microglia. NeuroTraX creates the NVU in an easy-to-use, easy-to-image format, featuring a continuous Blood-Brain-Barrier (BBB) unlike other chips that require posts or membranes that disrupt tissue continuity.
Sphere Format
NeuroDots™: Neurospheres in a Dish
Our NeuroDots™ (neurospheres or "mini-brains") can be used for various purposes such as toxicity screening and even bio-hybrid computation / intelligence. NeuroDots™ are created with human cells and can save precious time and resources in drug development.
We can help answer your questions pertaining to:
-
Drug Transport (Can our drug cross the BBB?)
​
-
Neurological Effects (How does our drug affect the brain?)
​
-
Drug Toxicity (Is our drug toxic to the brain or BBB?)
​
-
Drug Efficacy (Does our drug improve the features of a neurological disease?)​
​
-
Disease Modeling (What are the mechanisms of disease?)
​
EXAMPLES
CANCER METASTASIS
​
This figure shows NeuroTraX™ BBB cell-selectivity as a model for cancer metastasis. MB-231Br, a brain-seeking cancer line, extensively invades the NVU as compared to the wild-type MB-231 which does not cross the BBB.
ISCHAEMIC STROKE​
​
​
NeuroTraX™ could be used to monitor several disease states. The figure above shows its application in ischaemic stroke modeling. Other diseases applications include traumatic brain injuries, Alzheimer's disease, viral infection, and mutation-specific familial diseases among others.
STEM CELL THERAPY​
​
NeuroTraX™ BBB cell-selectivity screens for effectiveness of cell-based therapies and screen non-BBB-crossing cell therapies out of the pipeline.
Reach out to explore collaboration & partnership possibilities