Specific advantages and limitations of in vitro models of the respiratory environment.
In vitro devices
Advantages
Limitations
Artificial lung
Conventional
(i) Commercially available (ii) Widely used technology in patients
(i) Low gas exchange rates (ii) Mobility restrictions
Microfluidics
(i) Mimics lung anatomy (ii) Miniaturized and portable
(i) Not yet clinically applicable (ii) No product available on the market (iii) Requires complex designs
Air-Liquid interface
Conventional
(i) Open access (ii) Easy to probe and measure
(i) No physiological flow
Microfluidics
(i) Captures alveolar architecture (ii) Mimics physiological flows
(i) Immune testing studies yet to be accomplished (ii) Mechanical stretching requires sophisticated design
Liquid plugs
Conventional
(i) Easily adaptable
(i) Static (inflexible) system
Microfluidics
(i) Automated and controlled system (ii) Anatomically realistic airways (iii) State-of-the-art platform for airway reopening studies
(i) Requires high technical design and fabrication skills
Alveolar-capillary barrier
Conventional
(i) Easy and convenient to culture and maintain
(i) Static culture conditions (ii) No continuous waste removal
Microfluidics
(i) Mimics physiological (air/blood) flow environment (ii) Permits mechanical stretching (iii) Physiological length scales and ratio of cell volume to extracellular fluid
