Final Report Summary - TMIHCV (Microfabrication-Based Rational Design of Transcriptional-Metabolic Intervention for the Treatment of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Infection)
TMIHCV project is a multidisciplinary initiative to unravel the complexity of human metabolism using advanced microfluidic devices and genetically engineered cells. The project has already yielded important molecules, derived from citrus fruit, which can alleviate the metabolic burden of diabetes. Discoveries from the second and third year of the project unraveled novel aspects of the virus interactions with host metabolism, creating innovative methods to modulate human metabolism using unique cocktails of small molecules. The last stage of the project focused on the development of advanced Liver-on-Chip technology aiming to replace animal experiments with human tissues grown on microchips mimicking human physiology. This Liver-on-Chip technology could eliminate the use of animals in cosmetic toxicity testing. Important discoveries using this technology include unraveling new mechanism of acetaminophen toxicity that might explain its clinically observed kidney and dermal toxicity.
An unexpected finding in the project identified the involvement of a protein, called Von Willebrand factor (vWF) in the progression of diabetic retinopathy, a progressive loss of vision affecting over 100 million individuals worldwide. The discovery allows a new generation of therapies to be developed to block this progressive loss of vision associated with diabetes.
An unexpected finding in the project identified the involvement of a protein, called Von Willebrand factor (vWF) in the progression of diabetic retinopathy, a progressive loss of vision affecting over 100 million individuals worldwide. The discovery allows a new generation of therapies to be developed to block this progressive loss of vision associated with diabetes.