Rayleigh Instability-Driven Coaxial Spinning of Knotted Cell-Laden Alginate Fibers as Artificial Lymph Vessels

Constructing artificial lymph vessels, which play a key role in the immune response, can provide new insights into immunology and disease pathologies. An immune tissue is a highly complex network that consists of lymph vessels, with a beads-on-a-string knotted structure. Herein, we present the facile and rapid fabrication of beads-on-a-string knotted cell-laden fibers using coaxial spinning of alginate by exploiting the Plateau-Rayleigh instability. It is shown how alterations in the flow rate and alginate concentration greatly affect the beads-on-a-string structure, rooted in the Plateau-Rayleigh instability theory. Biocompatibility was confirmed by the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assay and live/dead staining of the encapsulated human white blood cells. Finally, the encapsulated white blood cells were still functional as indicated by their anti-CD3 activation to secrete interleukin 2. The rapid fabrication of a cell-laden beads-on-a-string three-dimensional (3D) culture platform enables a crude mimicry of the lymph vessel structure. With joint expertise in immunology, microfluidics, and bioreactors, the technology may contribute to the mechanistic assay of human immune response in vitro and functional replacement.

Automated summary

This study demonstrates the rapid fabrication of artificial lymph vessels using the Plateau-Rayleigh instability, providing new insights into immunology and disease pathologies. By utilizing a beads-on-a-string structure, researchers have successfully created cell-laden fibers, showcasing the potential for mechanistic assay of human immune response and functional replacement. Joint expertise in immunology, microfluidics, and bioreactors has paved the way for future advancements in this technology.