‘Muscle-on-a-chip’ offers asthma research potential

An innovative muscle-on-a-chip that mimics the functions of the human airway could accelerate research efforts in the field of asthma.

Created by scientists at the Harvard University's Wyss Institute, the technology is capable of accurately mimicking the way smooth muscle contracts in the human airway, both under normal circumstances and when exposed to asthma triggers.

It consists of a soft polymer well mounted on a glass substrate, with a planar array of microscale, engineered muscles that imitate the laminar structure of the airway's muscular layers.

Since it accurately replicates the behaviour of the airway both under normal circumstances and when exposed to asthma triggers, it could be used to evaluate new asthma drugs more accurately than animal testing methods.

Donald Ingber, founding director of the Wyss Institute, said: "The airway muscle-on-a-chip provides an important and exciting new tool for discovering new therapeutic agents."

In the UK, around 5.4 million people are currently receiving treatment for asthma. The condition is incurable, meaning new research in this field could be valuable.