Each year pharmaceutical companies spend millions of dollars to test drugs using in vitro models of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Flocel’s family of Dynamic In Vitro Blood-Brain Barrier (DIV-BBB) products offer a superior approach to this method by utilizing human endothelial cells and formation of tight junctions within its dynamic system, resulting in a physiologically accurate reflection of BBB characteristics.

The DIV-BBB 2.0 enables more accurate pharmacokinetic and toxicological studies and reflects in vivo blood-brain barrier properties. Its replication of important endothelial cell-astrocyte interactions and ability to sustain up to four cell culture modules substantially reduces drug development cost and experimental time. In addition to the cerebrovascular system, the cell culture modules allow for pericyte, epithelial and tumor cell growth, as well as modeling of bone marrow, the placental barrier, the blood-CSF barrier, and much more!

- In Vitro 3D Cell Culture Modules -

In contrast to other available models of the blood-brain barrier, the DIV-BBB cell culture modules respect the anatomical aspects of the endothelial cell-astrocyte interaction, and allow the formation of tight junctions that can be easily visualized by electron microscope or determined experimentally with the use of tracers. Cell differentiation is also crucially modulated by exposure to shear stress.

Flocel offers a large selection of in vitro 3-dimensional cell culture modules, from single-fiber (left) for on-stage microscopy to multi-fiber (right) for drug trafficking, leukocyte extravasation, monitoring trans-endothelial electrical resistance (TEER), and much more.

- Fluid Perfusion Unit -

The DIV-BBB 2.0 operates with a Fluid Perfusion Unit that can be supplied from either a piezo micro-pump for single-cartridge experiments or four peristaltic pumps simultaneously for concurrent trials. These pumps can provide steady-state and peristaltic (pulsatile) fluid flow through the cell culture modules, and can be user-controlled for flow rate and beats-per-minute. With the peristaltic pump, the user may also select amongst a variety of output pressures and tubing diameters.