Dual-Cell Bioartificial Liver Purifier for Acute Liver Failure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Acute liver failure is a life-threatening condition where the liver stops functioning rapidly, and current treatments like liver transplants face challenges such as donor scarcity and high costs, necessitating an effective extracorporeal solution.
Innovation Solution
An extracorporeal bioengineered dual-cell liver regeneration (EBDLR) system using a multi-layered bio purifier with hepatocytes and endothelial cells to detoxify and support liver function, maintaining hemodynamic stability and continuous operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If liver transplant is performed, then patient survival rate is improved, but donor availability and accessibility deteriorate due to scarcity and high costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a functional copy of the liver using bioprinted hepatocytes that can perform liver-specific functions such as detoxification, metabolism, and protein synthesis. This bioartificial liver device replicates the essential functions of a natural liver without requiring a donor organ, thereby resolving the contradiction between improving patient survival and addressing donor scarcity.
Solution Approach 2:
The bioprinted liver serves as an intermediary between the patient's body and the need for a full organ transplant. It provides temporary or permanent liver function support, acting as a mediator that bridges the gap between acute liver failure and either natural recovery or successful transplant, eliminating the need for donor organ availability.
2Device complexity
If traditional single-cell bioreactors are used, then device complexity is reduced, but treatment efficacy deteriorates due to lack of cellular interactions
Solution Approach 1:
The bioreactor is segmented into multiple distinct chambers, each housing different cell types (hepatocytes, Kupffer cells, endothelial cells) that mimic the functional zones of a natural liver. This segmentation allows for specialized functions in each chamber while maintaining overall system manageability and avoiding excessive complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges multiple cell types that normally interact in the liver into a single integrated bioreactor system. The different cell populations are combined in a controlled environment where they can communicate and perform synergistic functions, achieving treatment efficacy that surpasses single-cell bioreactors without creating unmanageable complexity.
3Ease of operation
If static bioreactor systems are used, then operational simplicity is improved, but treatment duration and patient outcomes deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The bioreactor incorporates dynamic flow systems that continuously circulate plasma through the cell chambers, mimicking the natural blood flow through liver sinusoids. This dynamic operation enhances mass transfer, nutrient delivery, and waste removal, thereby improving treatment efficacy and patient outcomes while maintaining operational simplicity through automated flow control.
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains continuous plasma flow and cellular metabolic activity throughout the treatment period. The constant circulation ensures uninterrupted detoxification and metabolic functions, extending the effective treatment duration and improving patient outcomes without requiring complex intermittent operations.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The EBDLR system effectively detoxifies blood, supports liver regeneration, and maintains patient stability, achieving 100% efficacy in treating acute liver failure in porcine models without hemolysis or infection, with potential for long-term use.
Implementation Method 1
An extracorporeal bioengineered dual-cell liver regeneration (EBDLR) system using a multi-layered bio purifier with hepatocytes and endothelial cells to detoxify and support liver function
Implementation Method 2
multi-layered bio purifier with hepatocytes and endothelial cells to detoxify and support liver function
Implementation Method 3
a plasma separator to receive blood from a subject via a first pump and separate a plasma component from the blood
Data Source
AI summary
A method of treating a subject with acute liver failure is disclosed. The method involves including an EBDLR system into the subject's blood circuit and passing blood through the EBDLR system, where the blood is continuously taken from the subject. Further, the method includes separating the blood into a plasma component and remainder using a plasma separator of the EBDLR system and then passing the plasma component into a bio purifier having a plurality of layers. Each layer may include hepatocytes on a first side of a membrane in a first channel, and endothelial cells on a second side of the membrane in a second channel. Furthermore, the method includes splitting the plasma component into the first channel and the second channel of the plurality of layers to purify the plasma component, restoring the blood by combining the purified plasma component and the remainder, and continuously returning the restored blood into the subject.