Neural cells constantly integrate information at multiple levels of biological organization, relaying signals to immune cells within the unique immune landscape of brain tissue. The blood-brain barrier (BBB), a selective permeability barrier formed by the vasculature and surrounding brain tissue, plays a critical role in mediating communication between the immune systems of the brain parenchyma and the peripheral bloodstream. X-TEL aims to illuminate the mediating role of the BBB and utilize it as a therapeutic target.
We approach this by reconstructing a functional neurovascular unit (NVU), a minimal yet comprehensive tissue structure that replicates neurophysiological and immunological features of the brain. Our model serves as an efficient platform to track the spatiotemporal immune dynamics throughout disease progression and treatments within the brain’s original immune context.
X-TEL is pushing the technical boundaries of recapitulating cellular cross-talks in engineered tissues and collecting/analyzing spatiotemporal multi-modal data. To implement the multidisciplinary features of our investigations, we actively collaborate with research teams in biomedical engineering, neurobiology, immunology, and oncology.
Workflow in the X-TEL. Our workflow begins with validating our engineered human cell-based model by replicating observations in in vivo mouse models. This engineered model, with its well-defined tissue architecture, enables efficient investigation of complicated cell interactions within the NVU microenvironment. The process involves real-time cell monitoring to identify critical time points, followed by phenotype profiling of immune and NVU cells at these points. Insights gained guide the development of precision therapeutics, which are then subjected to efficacy evaluation. Findings from the engineered model are translated to preclinical mouse models, creating a robust and iterative pipeline to inform clinical trial design.
