CELLBLOKS® Circulatory Kit

Create unique Multiple cell-type co-culture studies with CELLBLOKS®

CELLBLOKS® is patented, multi-organ/cell type modular “plug and play” co-culture technology. It serves the purpose of emulating the organ microenvironment in a standard in-vitro setting. It provides the feasibility of studying the assays in 2-D, 3-D cell growth condition, and in static or flow system, by using a standard perfusion rocker, without the need of a pump.

Using CELLBLOKS® different cell types can be grown on Barrier Blocks™ or Circulatory Blocks™ that emulate barrier organs or those in systematic circulation. Blocks containing organ specific cells can then be connected to each other in variety of ways to simulate complex organ-organ interactions. For instance, Intestinal cell are grown on Barrier Blocks, whereas Liver and lung cells in Circulatory Blocks.

In this way you can quickly and easy set up an experiment in the lab to simulate complex body conditions, for example, to test how organs communicate to each other when they are exposed to a test drug.  The platform is designed in a standard SBS plate format making it easy to use and not special equipment in required. 

CELLBLOKS® Circulatory Kit

The kit consists of a Base Chamber with Air-Lid, 9 Circulatory Blocks and 3 Blank Blocks. It is designed to test the interaction effects of up three-cell types, all in one platform. Each cell type can be grown on separate blocks and connected to each other in any combination and at any time of study. This  that allows you to:

1. Choose proximity of cell growth blocks with each and
2. Time points for different cell-cell interaction to start and end

Circulatory Blocks™ provide a flat plastic surface at the bottom of the Blocks for cells to grow with side circulatory windows on the walls allowing selective media diffusion (both inlet and outlet, simulating organs in systematic circulation e.g. liver, heart, lung). 

Blank Pods™ have flat plastic surface for cell growth but no inlet or outlet for media diffusion. Blank Blocks are used to grow control monocultures and at the same time create compartments in the same platform that enable each cell type to be studied individually, in sets of two combination and in a tri-culture.  

Benefits

1. CELLBLOKS® system allows you to set-up of three-way combination possibilities which means that each cell type in a system can be tested individually, in sets of two and in a tri-culture all within one plate. In fact, CELLBLOKS®, is the only platform that enables researchers this three-way expansion. This enables you to identify and select correct cell type combinations for further study at early stage, helping you save time and money.
2. Alternatively, multiple experiments can also be performed in one platform. Each platform has four individual channels to run separate cell-cell interaction experiments all at the same time within one device, enabling more productivity in less time
3. The CELLBLOKS®  platform is designed in a standard SBS plate format to and works with regular CO₂ incubator and readout equipment. This enables you to minimize environmental differences across standard culture vessels and analysis equipment giving you more reliable and reproducible data.
4. Each cel type is grown into separate block compartment which allows for each culture in study to be viewed and studied directly without disturbing the cells in culture. 
5. Each cell growth Block can be independently removed and substituted during study allowing you to test different cell-cell combinations in real-time.
6. Media can also be collected from the base chamber media ports for further analysis while the cells are interacting; permitting long term effect to be studied.
7. Supports 3-D cell culture growth by adding a desired 3D - matrix (e.g, Type I collage
8. The platform design is also suitable for perfusing the media using a standard rocker and such allowing higher throughput in less time

Circulatory block kit applications include:

• Liver modellingfor Drug Induced Liver Injury (see example) Incorporating (also see case study): 
  HepatoCytes: i.e., HepG2, HepsRG, primary Hepatocytes, Endothelial cells: eg., Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and Fibroblasts as supporting cells (eg., NIH/3T3).
• Cancer modelling: Interaction of storm cells with cancer compartment (Eg., Interaction of pancreatic carcinoma using Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cell (PDAC) with human normal dermal fibroblasts (hNDF). 
• Cell-cell interaction studies
• Substrate - cell interactions including hormones and growth factors

Specifications 

Product name 

CELLBLOKS Circulatory Blocks Kit 

Catalog Number

CBCircKit-01

What is in the Pack

 Volumes

• Each Channel requires a minimum of 3 ml of growth medium to allow cell-cell communications blocks. There are 4 channels in each platform
• Each cell growth block requires a minimum of 1 ml of growth medium 

Storage and Stability

Documentation

Brochure: CELLBLOKS info flyer 

CELLBLOKS Protocols

CELLBLOKS Videos

Technical Data