VAscular BIOreactor
The VAscular BIOreactor (VABIO) system is a bioreactor in which a medium sized artery can be subjected to mechanical and hemodynamic loading conditions, and even kept alive in a functional state for several days. Our former colleague Noemi Vanerio was the latest researcher who has been working on the MUSICARE project to develop culturing protocols and study vascular responses of carotid arteries in culture. In recent years, VABIO has been receiving interest from different institutes involved in vascular behavior.
HTIC - IIT Madras
Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre (HTIC) at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, a leading MedTech R&D centre, had approached LifeTec Group to have access to VABIO for their own studies. Dr. Nabeel P M is involved in ultrasound technology innovations to quantify vascular structural and functional characteristics, and is hoping to put a VABIO system to good use to detect early-stage changes in vascular properties when exposed to risk factors using their indigenous image-free ultrasound technology. After some interesting discussions between his team and LifeTec Group, the decision was made to purchase a VABIO system for the research lab in India!
VABIO Training
Vascular culturing is not a very straightforward activity to learn from a manual. To ensure that the research team in India could have a flying start to using the VABIO system, our team provided a hands-on training session in Eindhoven to teach them all the tips and tricks involved in operating the system, understanding its components and software, handling carotid arteries, and of course troubleshoot the system. Dr. Nabeel and Rahul Manoj (PhD scholar, IIT Madras) spent 3 days in our lab to get an in-depth training, and to demonstrate that they could master VABIO they were instructed to secretly sabotage each other’s system and show that they could solve the problem – which was a lot of fun. With this training under their belt, they’re ready to start their experiments with their own VABIO system in Madras!
We had the opportunity to experience a true fusion of Medtech know-how and scientific understanding at LifeTec Group, which was presented in the most engaging and educational way possible!
- DR. NABEEL P.M.
Lead Research Scientist (Cardiovascular Science & Engineering), Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre
WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU?
The vascular bioreactor system VABIO allows for acute investigations of functionality for vascular device innovations, as well as pharmacokinetics of drug-device combinations in an acute setting. Moreover, as blood vessels can be cultured for multiple days, the VABIO system also provides an interesting alternative to short-term animal trials as the early responses of living arteries can be studied ex-vivo in an incubator without any ethical concerns on animal welfare. If you are involved in R&D in vascular devices, regenerative or pharmacological therapies, and need a model in which you can study early vascular responses, then VABIO may be a solution for you! LifeTec Group can either support your project by conducting the studies in our lab facility, or we can make a VABIO system available so that you can use it on your own.
Interested in what VABIO can do for you? Then please send us a message!
Interested in more about what we do at LifeTec Group? Contact us!
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