OPZuid 2021 - 2027

Osteoarthritis (OA) is an age-related, degenerative joint disease that leads to pain, swelling, and stiffness. Worldwide, 595 million people suffer from OA. The World Health Organization (WHO) expects this number to double by around 2050 due to a growing and aging population. Compared to other parts of the Netherlands, OA has a particularly high incidence and impact in the southern region due to increasing aging. Current treatments are limited and mainly focused on alleviating pain and inflammation. If these treatment options are not successful, surgical joint replacement may ultimately provide a solution. Unfortunately, a curative treatment option for regenerative cartilage repair is not yet available.

Currently, two different models are used for OA research: in vitro (cell culture) models and in vivo (animal) models. Existing in vitro models lack the relevant, characteristic 3D microstructure, interaction with surrounding cell types, and the ability to replicate physical, chemical, and biomechanical OA stimuli. Moreover, these model studies require considerable time and expertise for accurate execution. Although animal models are more representative, anatomical, histological, biomechanical, and physiological differences result in poor translation of results to the clinic. As a result, there is a strong demand from the pharmaceutical industry, research institutions, and hospitals for a cost-effective high-throughput model that can accurately mimic OA.

Chiron is an organ-on-a-chip (OOC) company that owns patented technology to mechanically stimulate cells. In the past, Chiron, in collaboration with the University of Twente, developed a cartilage-on-a-chip model to study new OA treatments. This model also provides a way to culture patient-specific cells to enable personalized treatment plans. Given the growing demand for a high-throughput in vitro model, the consortium—consisting of Chiron, the University of Twente (UT), TNO, Medace, Hy2Care, and Maastricht University (UM)—has set the primary goal of developing an innovative new cartilage-on-a-chip model (the INTELLECTUALS-chip (IN-chip)) based on the existing cartilage-on-a-chip model from Chiron and UT.

Within this OPZuid project, the consortium will use microfluidics and nanofabrication processes to reduce individual chip dimensions, scale up and parallelize the current format from 1 to 24 test chambers per chip, expand the functionalities of the IN-chip, standardize and scale up the production process, and validate and implement the IN-chip according to GLP and ISO standards. Finally, the predictive value of the IN-chip will be validated using both patient-specific cells and regenerative medicines.

With this project, the consortium contributes to the objectives within the healthcare theme, and more specifically to the transitions of “regenerative medicine” and “personalization.” The chip developed by the consortium will result in an improved process for studying and developing new OA treatments. This will make regenerative cartilage repair possible, as the effectiveness and efficiency of treatments and drugs can be assessed accurately and cost-effectively. Moreover, patient-derived cells can be cultured on the chip to provide personalized recommendations, enabling a cost-effective, personalized OA treatment.

The research was conducted in collaboration with: 

• chrn on-chip biotechnologies B.V. 
• Universiteit Twente 
• Nederlandse Organisatie voor toegepast-natuurwetenschappelijk onderzoek TNO 
• Medace 
• Hy2Care B.V. 
• Maastricht University

The funding structure of the project is as follows:

• Emulating the chondrocyte microenvironment using multi-directional mechanical stimulation in a cartilage-on-chip
  https://doi.org/10.1039/D1LC01069G
   
• Joint-on-chip platforms: entering a new era of in vitro models for arthritis
  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41584-021-00736-6