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An organ chip could force a breakthrough in the fight against hereditary main artery ruptures. The University of Antwerp will receive 1.5 million euros from Europe and five years to complete genetic research into such a chip.
Source: BELGA
Today at 3:03 PM
“A dilation and sudden rupture of the main artery (aorta) can be woven into your DNA,” explains researcher Aline Verstraeten. “But that does not mean that such a hereditary condition should be a death sentence.” Verstraeten now wants to tackle the problem at the molecular level and is using an organ chip to do so.
“Hereditary diseases remain under the radar for a long time,” Verstraeten continues. “Until disaster strikes. In rare cases, even young children die from a sudden rupture of the main artery in the chest.”
To prevent tragedies, there are some imperfect solutions. There are preventive operations, but they entail complications. The medication on the market mainly lowers blood pressure and can only postpone a fracture.
According to the researcher, the problem must therefore be tackled at its root. “The starting point is the genetic abnormality. This defect causes processes to go wrong at cell level. Our goal is to stop or, at best, even reverse the harmful process.”
Scientists can already perform tests on aortas. The wall of an aorta consists of different cell types that scientists can recreate with stem cells. Based on a blood sample, one can completely copy the composition of a person’s aorta and thus simulate the vein in miniature.
“We then attach a chip of barely a few millimeters in size to that miniature version,” concludes Verstraeten. “Never before have all the different layers of a human aorta been placed in such an organ chip. The model will therefore be a world first.”