Kim, J.; Song, Y.; Jolly, A.; Hwang, T.; Kim, S.; Lee, B.; Jang, J.; Baek, K.; Yoo, S.; Jeon, N. L.

This study pioneers the design, manufacture, and validation testing of a high-throughput microphysiological system (MPS) model of the outer Blood-Retinal Barrier (oBRB). The Curio-Barrier MPS platform is engineered to be compatible with high-content screening technologies by incorporating an organ chip into a 96-well plate design to enable precise assessments of barrier integrity through Trans Epithelial Electrical Resistance (TEER), ZO-1 staining, or permeability measurements. This oBRB model enables investigation into the crosstalk among different human cell types in co-culture, including changes to the barrier integrity of the RPE monolayer and neovascularization events resulting from endothelial cell remodeling. The platform will be useful for drug discovery and development efforts for many diseases involving damage in oBRB and choroidal neovascularization, such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD).