A living tissue model device includes: a first liquid compartment storing a liquid composition; a second liquid compartment storing a liquid composition; and a cell layered body disposed between the first liquid compartment and the second liquid compartment, as a partition between both compartments. A vascular wall model includes: a porous membrane having a honeycomb structure; a vascular endothelial cell layer disposed on one face of the porous membrane; and a smooth muscle cell layer, or a mesenchymal stem cell layer, disposed on another face of the porous membrane. A vascular wall model device includes: a first liquid compartment storing a liquid composition; a second liquid compartment storing a liquid composition; and a vascular wall model disposed between the first liquid compartment and the second liquid compartment, as a partition between both compartments. Applications of these models or model devices are also provided.

The present disclosure provides a blood vessel model including: a pair of channel members, mutually opposing each other, each of which includes an opposing face in which a respective microchannel is formed; and a porous membrane that includes plural through-holes penetrating in a thickness direction, that is disposed between the opposing faces of the pair of channel members, and that partitions between the microchannels, wherein the porous membrane is provided with a vascular endothelial cell layer so as to cover one face facing one of the microchannels, an average opening diameter of the through-holes is from 1 m to 20 m, and an opening coverage ratio of the through-holes is from 30% to 70%.

The invention is in the domain of delivery of molecules to brain cells across the blood-brain barrier. The invention relates to a novel polypeptide-based carrier that allows the efficient delivery of an effector peptide, to neuron cells across the blood-brain barrier, and to methods for the production and testing of such carrier, including a model for testing the capacity of such molecule to cross the blood-brain barrier and/or the toxicity of molecules on the blood brain barrier and/or the capacity of molecules that have crossed to target human brain cells (e/g. neurons, astrocytes and microglial cells).

The present invention provides methods for the identification, isolation and/or enrichment of human corneal endothelial cells (HCECs). In some embodiments, the method comprises a positive selection process in which a cell population containing human corneal cells is contacted with a positive affinity reagent that selectively binds to HCECs relative to cells other than HCECs (e.g., corneal keratocytes, etc.) in the population and/or a negative selection process in which a cell population containing HCECs is contacted with a negative affinity reagent that selectively binds to cells other than HCECs in the population relative to HCECs. The present invention also provides reagents and kits for the identification, isolation and/or enrichment of HCECs as well as compositions that are enriched in HCECs.

Methods for generating human arterial endothelial cells under defined conditions in the absence of insulin are described.

The present invention relates to cell-based methods for determining the biological activity of defibrotide. In particular, the invention provides a method for assessing the potency of defibrotide by assessing the viability of mammalian cells in the presence of at least one cytotoxic agent and one or more concentrations of defibrotide. Such methods are particularly useful for standardizing pharmaceutical compositions comprising defibrotide.

The present disclosure relates generally to methods and compositions useful in cell and tissue biology and therapeutics. In particular, an in vitro method for differentiating pluripotent cells into endothelial colony forming cell-like cells (ECFC-like cells) is provided. A purified human cell population of NRP-1+CD31+ ECFC-like cells is provided, wherein at least some of the cells in the population have a high proliferation potential. Therapeutic and test agent screening methods for using the cell populations of the present disclosure are provided.

Disclosed herein, in part, are pharmaceutical compositions comprising a MetAp-2 inhibitor and a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient. The pharmaceutical compositions are contemplated to be useful, for example in the treatment of obesity.

A bioreactor and methods for use can include a microfibrous scaffold, that can be made of a composite bioink, and that can have endothelial cells directly embedded within the scaffold using an additive manufacturing process. The scaffold can further be seeded with cardiomyocytes. The hydrogel scaffold can be composed of a plurality of serpentine layers, with each serpentine layers, which can be placed on each other in a cross-hatch configuration, so that the primary axes of successive layers are perpendicular. This configuration can establish an aspect ratio for the scaffold, which can be selectively varied. For greater strength, the successive layers that have a primary axis in the same direction can be placed in the scaffold so that they are slight offset from each other. The scaffold can be placed in the bioreactor with perfusion, for use in cardiovascular drug screening and other nanomedicine endeavors.

Disclosed herein, in part, are methods for identifying MetAP-2 inhibitors to address the treatment of obesity and related diseases as well as other ailments favorably responsive to MetAP-2 modulator treatment.