XposeALI – new control system

A new control system for our in vitro Air Liquid Interface (ALI) cell culture module XposeALI lets us pre-set and regulate airflow more exactly through the system, meaning greater control for researchers and more reliable data on the cellular effects of particles in the lung. Environmental research teams at Karolinska Institutet will shortly be using it for nanoparticle research.

Culturing 3D-models in ALI mimics the uptake of substances into the lung more exactly than conventional cell culturing, delivering precise data that more realistically mimics in vivo conditions. The new control system allows both the airflow above the cell culture, and the perfusate flow below the membrane, to be regulated exactly. Researchers can set and control the flow rates of both air and perfusate far more precisely than before.

Testing and developing the new XposeALI control system.

XposeALI has three test cups. The new control box has three mass flow regulators that can be computer set to control exactly the flow of air in the cups above the cell covered membrane. Two peristaltic pumps control the feed of the perfusate into the shallow trough sealed around the lower half of the cup. This allows the nutrient-supplying perfusate to be pumped very close to the cell-coated membrane similar to the capillary blood vessels in the lungs. These too can be set exactly.

The increased precision in setting the control system of XposeALI means that users can be confident that the exposure parameters will not add to uncertainty in their biological readouts. It is used regularly by environmental teams working on the effects of airborne nanoparticles. But for teams developing inhaled pharmaceuticals too, in vitro data of this detail, and the ability to set and control conditions so exactly, offer many scientific advantages.