Biology subjects

Auricchio, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Auricchio, F..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

LigHTS: Massively Parallel Biomimetic Photo-Functionalization for Imaging-Based Ultra-High-Throughput Screening

Imaging-based ultra-high-throughput screening (UHTS) in pharma and biotech still runs on 384/1536-well plates whose stiff, flat substrates limit biological fidelity and screening efficiency. Highly biomimetic organs-on-chips and organoids improve relevance but lack reproducibility and plate-scale throughput. Biomimetic hydrogel scaffolds can be produced at scale through photopolymerization, which yet uses focused optics to define micrometer-resolved geometries, constraining scalability. To address the technical challenge of truly scalable biomimetic substrates featuring anisotropies, this study presents LigHTS, an all-optical, in-well method that replaces focused with collimated illumination to photofabricate structured hydrogels in standard 384/1536-well plates. Adding food dye tartrazine to gelatin-methacrylate (GelMA) solutions increases hydrogel thickness sensitivity to UV dose by [~]10x, allowing uniform control of film thickness without lenses. Entire plates are functionalized in parallel with soft hydrogels ([~]1-10 kPa) whose thickness is tunable from 10 to 100 {micro}m. Simultaneously, simply interposing film photomasks encoding anisotropies enables orthogonal control of thickness and topography at UHTS throughput. Biological effect is demonstrated with mechanosensitive HT1080 cells, which display stiffness- and topography-dependent spreading and contact-guided migration on LigHTS-produced grooved substrates. Geometric uniformity across the plate (coefficient of variation <20%) meets HTS reproducibility standards, providing a readily available solution with enhanced biomimicry for imaging-based UTHS pipelines.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2024

HYDRA: HYdrogel Dispensing with Robotic Automation for high throughput drug testing

Traditional plastic- and glass-based cell culture platforms lack physiological relevance which limits their predictive power in drug development. Organoids and organs-on-chip offer biomimicry in late preclinical stages but lack scalability for high-throughput screening (HTS) in earlier stages. In fact, even introducing the simplest critical biomimetic cue, thin hydrogel layers, into the small wells of HTS plates causes the formation of curved menisci that disrupt cell seeding and imaging. We introduce HYDRA (HYDrogels by Robotic liquid handling Automation), an automated method that enables consistent hydrogel fabrication in HTS plates. We used liquid handling robots to dispense hydrogel precursor solutions and avoid contact with the sidewalls to prevent meniscus formation. We used gelatin for its mild surfactant properties, which allow pinning of the droplets contact line, promoting uniform spread. Finally, we re-aspirated the excess liquid, leaving behind a hydrogel layer with controlled stiffness and thickness. We show compatibility with standard 96- and 384-well plates and integration with existing automated workflows, including quality control. We validated HYDRA in dose-response assays using anti-cancer drugs, genetically engineered epithelial cells, phase holography, and fluorescence microscopy. We believe that HYDRA provides a scalable, biomimetic, and therefore more predictive alternative for early- stage screening and in vitro drug testing.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2022

Quantitative Assessment of 3D Printed Blood Vessels Produced with J750™ Digital Anatomy™ for Suture Simulation

Blood vessels anastomosis is one of the most challenging and delicate tasks to learn in many surgical specialties, especially for vascular and abdominal surgeons. Such a critical skill implies a learning curve that goes beyond technical execution. The surgeon needs to gain proficiency in adapting gestures and the amount of force expressed according to the type of tissue he/she is dealing with. In this context, surgical simulation is gaining a pivotal role in the training of surgeons, but currently available simulators can provide only standard or simplified anatomies, without the chance of presenting specific pathological conditions and rare cases. 3D printing technology, allowing the manufacturing of extremely complex geometries, find a perfect application in the production of realistic replica of patient-specific anatomies. According to available technologies and materials, morphological aspects can be easily handled, while the reproduction of tissues mechanical properties still poses major problems, especially when dealing with soft tissues. The present work focuses on blood vessels, with the aim of identifying - by means of both qualitative and quantitative tests - materials combinations able to best mimic the behavior of the biological tissue during anastomoses, by means of J750 Digital Anatomy technology and commercial photopolymers from Stratasys. Puncture tests and stitch traction tests are used to quantify the performance of the various formulations. Surgical simulations involving anastomoses are performed on selected clinical cases by surgeons to validate the results. A total of 37 experimental materials were tested and 2 formulations were identified as the most promising solutions to be used for anastomoses simulation. Clinical applicative tests, specifically selected to challenge the new materials, raised additional issues on the performance of the materials to be considered for future developments.

bioengineering↗