May 27, 2021 at 12 PM EST

Giovanni Offeddu, PhD – Postdoctoral Fellow in Kamm Lab @ MIT

“Microphysiological vascular networks to predict patho/physiological drug distribution”

Microphysiological systems provide platforms with enhanced physiological relevance to test drugs for use in human populations. Three-dimensional in vitro microvascular networks self-assemble from human cells within microfluidic devices and show significant morphological and functional similarities to capillaries in vivo. Their use to assess vascular permeability can aid the prediction of patho/physiological drug distribution and the development of molecules with improved access to therapeutic targets.

Roberto Villasenor Solorio, PhD – Lab Head, Cellular Transport and Investigative Safety @ Roche

“Human in vitro systems to evaluate tissue targeting and distribution”

Tissue targeting of biologics, such as antibody conjugates or AAVs, requires efficient transport from the blood into the desired target organs. Tissue distribution of biologics remains exclusively evaluated in preclinical animal models, which prevent a thorough characterization of cellular transport mechanisms across the vasculature. Here, we present new human in vitro platforms to investigate the mechanisms of vascular transport and highlight how they can accelerate the development of optimized therapeutic compounds with a focus on brain targeting.