Developing a placental cell membrane model to investigate drug-membrane interactions
Date
2025
Authors
Brett, Raven
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Victoria
Abstract
Little is known about the interactions between common drugs and placental cell membranes, despite widespread use by many pregnant individuals in first world nations. This project aimed to develop an in-vitro model for placental cell membranes, throughout different stages of pregnancy, in order to look at how different pharmaceutical compounds are able to diffuse through the membrane. A microfluidic device was used to form two aqueous droplets in an oil phase that contained a replica mixture of the placental cell membrane lipids during 1st trimester, 3rd trimester, and full term stages of development. These droplets were coated in the lipids and brought together to form a droplet interface bilayer which models the placenta membrane between the droplets. A fluorophore was used as a drug model and its transfer from one droplet (the donor) to the other droplet (the acceptor) was quantified to determine each model membrane's permeability. The initial model was able to show differences in permeability between different placental cell membrane lipid compositions, but more refined data collection and analysis methods are required to be able to statistically distinguish between the data sets.
Description
Keywords
Particle, physics, background, analysis, charged, decays